Roppongi Hills & Maman: The Bronze Arachnid of Modernity

Why is it significant?

Step onto the elevated granite plaza of Roppongi Hills and gaze upward at Maman, the colossal ten-meter bronze spider towering on slender, jointed legs over the bustling concourse.

Key Facts

Open the walk

Step onto the elevated granite plaza of Roppongi Hills and gaze upward at Maman, the colossal ten-meter bronze spider towering on slender, jointed legs over the bustling concourse. Created by celebrated French-American sculptor Louise Bourgeois and unveiled in two thousand and three, this monumental sculpture features twenty marble eggs cradled in a ribbed wire sac beneath its ribbed thorax. Bourgeois conceived this arachnid monument as a poignant ode to her mother, a master tapestry weaver who restored antique tapestries in Paris, embodying protective maternity, creative repair, and fierce loyalty.

Soaring two hundred and thirty-eight meters directly behind the spider stands the glass-clad monolith of Roppongi Hills Mori Tower, designed by the Kohn Pedersen Fox architectural partnership. Opened in two thousand and three, Roppongi Hills pioneered the visionary 'vertical garden city' concept developed by real-estate tycoon Minoru Mori, who spent seventeen arduous years negotiating with four hundred individual land owners to consolidate fifty-five hectares of warrens into this integrated mega-complex. The complex stands as a premier international cultural center where modern commerce meets contemporary visual art and global cuisine.

Ascend the curved glass elevator tower toward the Mori Art Museum and the Tokyo City View observation deck on the fifty-second floor, which provides an awe-inspiring three-hundred-and-sixty-degree panorama of Tokyo's infinite urban ocean. On breezy days, the outdoor Sky Deck lets visitors feel the mountain winds sweeping off Mount Fuji across the metropolis. The open-air plaza regularly hosts international film festivals, outdoor contemporary sculpture exhibitions, and seasonal cultural celebrations.

Look closely at the granite paving stones beneath the spider's bronze legs: Bourgeois deliberately insisted that the sculpture be installed on a public walkway without stanchions, inviting commuters to walk directly under the spider's belly and experience an emotional blend of primal terror and comforting maternal protection.

Take the winding open-air stone staircase down to the peaceful waters and weeping willows of Mohri Garden.