Remember the stunning teamLab Borderless? Well, teamLab Planets is the follow-up to the now-closed Borderless exhibition, and it’s every bit as stunning.

For the uninitiated, teamLab exhibits seamlessly merge art, science and technology with the natural world. Borders are blurred through interactive works, intertwined with a mind-blowing futuristic element. All the art in the exhibits are also aimed at altering visitors’ understanding of space, time, and even life itself. The boundaries between self, others, and art are eliminated, giving rise to an inspiring world where all visitors go through the same experience as one.

teamLab Planets even ups the ante by making it an immersive experience, where you’ll go through the exhibits entirely barefoot. The artworks here are created based on the ‘Body Immersive’ concept, where the entire body gets immersed in the art.

When you first arrive, place all your belongings (except your phone, to take lots of pictures!) into free-for-use lockers. Pay attention to a short introductory video, and you’re off!

Waterfall of Light Particles at the Top of an Incline

Wade through a water-covered slope to reach an illuminated waterfall. Light reflects off the particles of water, which then cascade down to create a waterfall.

Soft Black Hole

The next exhibit is really fun but warning: it can be rather tiring to make it from one end to the other. It’s basically a room covered with beanbags; here, the environment (that changes with movement) influences your body; your body, in turn, influences the environment and the bodies of others. And the cycle continues! As described by teamLab, it’s where “your body becomes a space that influences another body”.

In today’s time and age, we are mostly surrounded by flat and hard surfaces. This has caused us to lose consciousness of our bodies; this exhibit was thus created to remind us of “the body that we’ve forgotten in everyday life”.

The Infinite Crystal Universe

You might have seen this at Singapore’s ArtScience Museum, but think about five times bigger. Be surrounded by LED lights that constantly change in colour; if you download the teamLab app, you can even influence the light patterns using your phone. This renders the installation to be created by the people in the space, and will always be changing.

The interactive artwork is said to express the universe through “accumulated light points that spread infinitely in every direction”. There are even mirrors on the ceiling, so go all out with your photos. The trippier, the better!

Drawing on the Water Surface Created By the Dance of Koi and People - Infinity

This was our favourite exhibit! The entire room is filled with knee-length (or shin-length, if you’re tall!). Colourful projections of koi are reflected on the surface of the water; they’re rendered in real-time, and are influenced by the people in the water. If the koi are touched, they even turn into a glorious flower that scatters with the ripples of the water.

It’s best to wear shorts to the museum for this experience; if not, shorts are available for rent too. Dry off with towels provided at the exit.

Cold Life

A spatial calligraphy project, this exhibit forms the Japanese/Chinese character for “life”, which transforms into a tree.

Expanding Three-Dimensional Existence in Transforming Space

Now, this exhibit is something all ages can enjoy. Enter a room that’s filled with giant — and we do mean, giant! — spheres that react to touch. The free-standing spheres float in the air; whenever they react, they change in colour and emit a sound, which reverberates through the room. During this colour change, the space changes between the collection of spheres, creating a three-dimensional space. When a group of spheres become the same colour, a flat colour wall is also created.

Have fun with this exhibit — we know we did!

Floating in the Falling Universe of Flowers

This exhibit is somewhat like a planetarium, where flowers are digitally projected on the walls. Lie down or sit still to enjoy the full immersive experience — and “eventually your body floats, and you dissolve into the artwork world”.

The artworks are rendered in real-time, which means that the exhibit will never be the same! This draws an alignment with how flowers grow and wither with time — resulting in a cycle of life and death that continues for perpetuity. Just like how the artwork is continually changing, “the universe at this moment in time can never be seen again”.

Update: This exhibit seems to have been replaced by other new exhibits, which include the Moss Garden of Resonating Microcosms, and the Floating Flower Garden.

We had an amazing experience at teamLab Planets, and we guarantee you will too. Have the best time!