Hiraku Morilla: ‘Pride means respect for those who walked so we could run'

Japan Times

2 days ago

Hiraku Morilla, 40, has been the director of the Nakamura Keith Haring Collection since 2014, curating exhibitions and events about the American artist in the museum's facilities in Yamanashi Prefecture. Morilla advocates for the LGBTQ+ community through his work, combating discrimination and the stigmatization of HIV.
1. Can you tell us about your cultural background? I'm Japanese and Nuyorican (New York Puerto Rican). Expressing both Asian and Latino cultural identities at once has always felt disjointed — they're so far apart that embodying both never feels seamless.
2. How was your experience growing up in the Bronx? I was surrounded by rhythm and style. The way we spoke had cadence. The way we moved had rhythm. Manhattan was right there, but it felt like a different universe. We walked through metal detectors every morning at school. That's what it looks like when a system abandons the community.
3. What was it like being multiracial and queer? In my senior year of high school, I wrote a letter to myself that said, 'Do not come out as gay, no matter what.' I didn't want to be associated with the gay men who were mocked on TV, beat up in school or gossiped about. That changed when I started meeting them in real life.
4. How did your early life experiences shape your career? In Japan, New York becomes a kind of resume. But being Japanese and authentically New York throws people off. My New York isn't aesthetic or curated. It's survival. It's contradiction. It's lived, not borrowed.
5. How was working as a creative director under designer Patricia Field ('Sex and the City,' 'The Devil Wears Prada')? She valued authenticity. (Her brand) was a place where we had to prove ourselves — but we were family. Some of my pieces ended up on the cover of Vogue, on Beyoncé, on K-pop idols. Now it sounds surreal. Back then, it was just another Tuesday.
6. Why did you relocate to Japan? The catalyst was my mom's passing of pancreatic cancer in 2014. When I learned her condition had suddenly worsened, I packed up everything and flew straight to Japan to be with her. Just a few days after I arrived, she passed.
7. How are NYC and Tokyo different? What I like about living in Tokyo is the certainty. If I call a cab, it'll wait for me until I come out. In New York, if you take too long, it's gone. If the train's running late, Tokyo will tell you exactly how late. If you line up for something, you'll get in. If a package says 'open here' and you tear that part, it actually opens.
8. How did you end up as the director of the Nakamura Keith Haring Collection? Patricia suggested I visit the museum while I was in Japan. I did, and by chance I ran into the collector himself, Dr. (Kazuo) Nakamura. After a long conversation, he offered me a position. It was a rare chance to stay connected to New York while being in Japan.
9. What kinds of people visit the collection? All kinds. Older visitors often don't come for Haring; they just enjoy the area and happen to see a museum and drop by. Younger visitors tend to know Haring through K-pop. We also get a lot of Japanese celebrities and influencers. And of course, we have many LGBTQ+ visitors. We're not just the only Keith Haring museum in the world — we're also the only queer museum in Japan.
10. How does the location impact the visitor experience? Being in the mountains of Yamanashi — two hours from Tokyo by train or car — definitely affects our foot traffic. For some people, that distance feels like a burden. But at the same time, that distance creates something special. When you arrive, it's just you and Haring's work. No city noise, no gallery-hopping — just this one space, in nature, dedicated entirely to him. That isolation creates a kind of intimacy. It invites people to slow down, to really spend time with the art.
11. When did you first become aware of Haring? Growing up in New York, Haring was ubiquitous. As a kid, I automatically recognized his figures. Later, I also recognized him as a gay icon. But I really became aware of his depth as an artist and activist when I first visited the museum.
"Haring's activism (is) not just relevant, but necessary," says Morilla of how the American artist's themes resonate in a contemporary Japanese context. |
Koichi Nakazawa
12. What draws you to his work? The messaging. Take his faceless figures. They're simple, but emotionally loaded. That ability to express so much with so little is really powerful. Also, Haring's work is openly queer and deeply sex-positive. He's clearly attracted to masculinity, but not in a toxic way. That tenderness keeps drawing me in.
13. Why is Haring's legacy still relevant today? Unfortunately, we're still dealing with the same issues we were facing in the 1980s. But at the center of his work was always kindness. Keith would stand with you against racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, all of it.
14. How does your advocacy for LGBTQ+ issues and HIV awareness relate to Haring's legacy? Haring was openly gay and disclosed his HIV-positive status. In 1980s America, that meant putting himself at risk. In Japan, HIV infection rates are still increasing, and the government still hasn't recognized same-sex marriage. That makes Haring's activism not just relevant, but necessary.
15. What's your view on LGBTQ+ issues in Japan? There's a disconnect I see within the community here. There's a small, vocal group doing incredibly important work, pushing for rights and visibility. But sometimes, the focus is more on being digestible to straight audiences — presenting queerness as family-friendly, polished and easy to sympathize with.
16. What's the present situation of HIV awareness in Japan? Most guys I talk to know what PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis, a medication to prevent HIV infection) is. The message of U=U (an undetectable viral load equals untransmittable HIV) is more visible too. But PrEP is still not covered by national health insurance. Routine HIV testing still isn't normalized. We also need more mental health care. If prevention is neglected, we need support after diagnosis. You can't ignore people on both ends.
17. Do you face any discrimination in your daily life as an openly gay man in Japan? The fact that my human rights as a queer individual aren't recognized means I'm facing discrimination every day, whether it's obvious or not.
18. What do you think about Tokyo Rainbow Pride finally moving to June, in line with the rest of the world? I always thought it was kind of strange that it wasn't. Maybe it was because June is the rainy season here. The upside was that it added to Tokyo's eccentricity. But in terms of global visibility, aligning with the rest of the world makes sense.
19. What are your plans or projects for Pride Month this year? I'm hosting a lip-sync battle featuring Miss Grand Japan contestants at fancyHIM (a bar in Shinjuku Ni-chome). I've been one of the judges since 2018. I'm also doing a diversity, equity and inclusion workshop at (the hotel) W Osaka. I've been doing this with W every June. W Union Square was kind of a haven for us nightlife gays in New York.
20. What does Pride mean to you? When I was younger, Pride meant the NYC Pride parade. By the time the parade ended at Stonewall, I'd be making out with someone. But as I got older, I learned that Stonewall was the place where it all began. That's when Pride started to mean something deeper. Pride is respect for those who walked so we could run — or make out with boys in the street without fear.