Phoenix Art Museum was recently surprised with a $175,000 check from the Men’s Art Council, a non-profit member organization of Valley philanthropists devoted to supporting the museum’s community outreach initiatives via annual contributions. Mr.: You Can Hear the Song of This Town, the museum’s upcoming exhibition showcasing Japanese artist Mr., will be the first of many to benefit from this generous donation.

“This gift to Phoenix Art Museum is the latest instance of the long- standing relationship between our organizations and will empower the museum to provide the community with unique, high-quality exhibitions,” said Joel Coen, Men’s Arts Council President.

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Mr. premieres Friday, November 4 from 5 to 9 p.m., headlining Phoenix Art Museum’s November First Friday celebration. The exhibition explores the vivid, chaotic, and manga-inspired world of one of today’s most popular Japanese artists. Mr.: You Can Hear the Song of This Town is the first U.S. solo exhibition in more than five years to exclusively showcase the imaginative and visually complex works of contemporary Japanese artist Mr. A self-described member of the otaku subculture – characterized by obsessive interests in anime, manga, and reclusion into virtual fantasy worlds – Mr. creates feverish, graffiti-inspired paintings and cartoon-like sculptures, installations, and video works that combine high and low culture to examine themes of desire, fantasy, and trauma within Japanese society and among a global audience obsessed with social media. 

“We are very grateful to Men’s Arts Council for their ongoing support of the Museum’s exhibitions,” said Jeremy Mikolajczak, the Sybil Harrington Director and CEO of Phoenix Art Museum. “For more than 55 years, MAC’s generosity has helped bring art from around the world to engage audiences in Arizona. With their support of Mr.: You Can Hear the Song of This Town and the exhibition’s admission-free First Friday opening celebration, MAC is ensuring community members and visitors are exposed to artworks by one of Japan’s most popular living artists.” 

Many of Phoenix Art Museum’s exhibitions are generously funded by the Men’s Arts Council (MAC), which was founded in 1967 to back the museum’s programs and activities. MAC can support the museum in a number of ways thanks to the efforts of its over 200 members. The funds provided for this $175,000 donation were raised via recent MAC events, including the Copperstate 1000, Lost Negatives of Rock & Roll, and the Copperstate Overland.

The Mr. First Friday evening event will include free entry to Phoenix Art Museum, drinks and food trucks, live music, arts-engagement activities, and more. Details will be posted on phxart.org and the Museum’s social media outlets as they become available. Mr.: You Can Hear the Song of This Town runs from November 2022 to March 2023.