Warehouse TERRADA Opens Bonded Gallery in Tennoz, Tokyo to Promote International Art Galleries and Auctions within Japan

[Tokyo, Japan] Warehouse TERRADA announced that we have newly opened Bonded Gallery art venue in the Tennoz area of Tokyo from September 2022. Bonded Gallery and its neighboring Bonded Lounge (a bonded warehouse) aim to promote the presence of international art galleries and auction houses in Japan. The Tennoz area where Bonded Gallery is based boasts a range of art-related facilities—including a dedicated warehouse for artworks, a collectors’ museum of contemporary art, and a gallery complex—placing it right at the heart of the Japanese art scene. Warehouse TERRADA plans to drive the growth of Tennoz as a vibrant domestic and international art hub while in turn contributing to the globalization of the Japanese art market.

■ Bonded Gallery Details

The facility is a permanent venue within a larger art complex that already houses nearly 20 of Japan’s leading art galleries. It is available as a Japan-based venue for acquisition meetings and auction previews of artworks from international galleries.

Location: Terrada Art Complex II 4F, 1-32-8 Higashi-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 140-0002

Facilities: Gallery space (132.71 m2), warehouse (12.38 m2)

Features: 3.5 m ceiling height, temperature and humidity control, total camera surveillance inside the bonded area for transporting artworks (in accordance with Japanese customs law), a large elevator, etc.

Terrada Art Complex website: https://terrada-art-complex.com/en

The facility was authorized as a bonded warehouse* for use on April 12th, 2022.

*Bonded warehouse: A customs area authorized by the Director-General of Customs as a place for foreign cargo to be stored, as per Japanese customs law. While there, it can be loaded, unloaded, transported, and stored without being subject to customs duties, etc.

■ Bonded Lounge Details

Bonded Lounge is a bonded warehouse offering a dedicated area for importing and exporting artworks to and from Japan, as well as providing a venue for viewing and acquiring artworks.

With a floor space of 84.2 m2 and a ceiling height of 3.5 m, it is suitable for accommodating large paintings and sculptures. Bonded Lounge is available for both private and public viewings and acquisitions.

Location: Warehouse TERRADA G Building, 2-6-10 Higashi-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 140-0002

Facilities: Bonded warehouse (84.2 m2), bonded lounge area (47.5 m2), general lounge area (52.3 m2)

Specifications: 3.5 m ceiling height, temperature and humidity controlled environment, a large elevator, gas fire extinguishers, various security measures (surveillance cameras, motion detectors, card keys, etc.)

Seamless Artwork Storage After Import

Our bonded areas are located in the Tennoz area of Tokyo, a hub of art-related facilities with convenient transportation links from downtown Tokyo and Haneda Airport, making it easily accessible for art collectors both in Japan and from overseas. Our head office building also offers a high-security storage warehouse for artworks and other valuable items, with adjustable temperature and humidity control. You can also transport artworks from overseas, host acquisition meetings in our bonded lounge, and store items in our storage warehouse after completing import procedures. Our group company TERRADA ART ASSIST Co., Ltd. also provides a one-stop solution for your art-related needs, including transportation within Japan and overseas, exhibits, conservation and insurance services.

Bonded Gallery Uses: Art Auction Previews

Bonded Gallery was recently used for an art auction preview run by New Art Est-Ouest Auctions Co., Ltd. A total of 154 lots were exhibited, featuring in-demand works from world-renowned domestic and international artists including Yayoi Kusama, Lee Ufan, Yoshitomo Nara, Ayako Rokkaku, Shinro Ohtake, Aya Takano, Maki Hosokawa, Yoshimasa Tsuchiya, Chiharu Shiota, KAWS, KYNE, Yusuke Hanai, Andy Warhol, Pablo Picasso and Tsuguharu Foujita. New Art Est-Ouest Auctions was founded in 1984, and actively runs auctions in Tokyo, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Promoting International Art Distribution Through Two Bonded Areas

In the past, art dealers introducing art from overseas collections to art collectors in Japan had to take into account tax implications such as customs duties, as bonded areas dedicated to exhibiting and viewing artworks had not been developed in Japan. This process made it difficult to purchase overseas artworks or for overseas galleries to gain a foothold in the Japanese art market. However, revisions to Japanese customs law in December 2020 and February 2021 have now allowed the likes of art auctions, gallery exhibitions, and art fairs to be held in bonded areas, so we have taken this opportunity to open Bonded Gallery with a view to further revitalizing the domestic art market. We have also expanded our existing bonded warehouse, called Bonded Lounge, which is located at our head office building and has been in operation since 2014.

The bonding system allows art to be transported from the owner’s country of residence for the purpose of viewings and acquisition under bonded conditions. Bonded Gallery and Bonded Lounge will play an important role in further revitalizing the Japanese art market by enabling viewings and acquisition meetings of art pieces transported to Japan from overseas without them being subject to customs duties and other payments. These two bonded areas will allow foreign art to flow into the Japanese market, promote the purchase of artworks from domestic and overseas art collectors in Japan, and draw international galleries to Japan’s shores.

About Warehouse TERRADA

In addition to its artwork storage service launched in 1975, Warehouse TERRADA has gone on to develop a wide range of art related businesses, including artwork conservation, packing, transportation, and exhibition services. Its guiding principle is to pass on the passion of artists and the intrinsic value of art to future generations. In recent years, the company has been working to develop the Tennoz area of Tokyo into the world’s most exciting art capital through a range of facilities promoting art and culture, such as its collectors’ museum of contemporary art, WHAT MUSEUM, its art materials lab, PIGMENT TOKYO, and the Terrada Art Complex, which is the largest gallery complex in Japan.