Special ‘Contemporary Art Flavor’ Umaibo to Sell for ¥100,000; Tomokazu Matsuyama Looks to Create new Value with Art

The Yomiuri Shimbun

13:26 JST, March 6, 2025

Umaibo, a stick-shaped puffed corn snack which usually sells for ¥15 each, will be offered up in a limited supply of special “contemporary art flavor” for ¥100,000 each.

Tomokazu Matsuyama, a contemporary artist based in New York, developed it in collaboration with Umaibo manufacturer Yaokin Co.

Matsuyama said he would like to ask society if “new value can be given to widely-known products through the concept of art.”

The Umaibo will be displayed in transparent acrylic boxes that cannot be opened, designed for them to be appreciated as pieces of art.

Matsuyama designed the package, but the rest is the same as normal Umaibo.

He said he would like to enclose the Umaibo as if they were fossils, because they have become so well-known, with everybody seeming to have a story of finding their favorite flavor to match their personality.

Only 50 of these Umaibo art pieces will be sold, starting Saturday, at the Azabudai Hills Gallery shop in Minato Ward, Tokyo, where his exhibition will start on the same day.