acne paper pink library arrives at standBy harajuku in tokyo

pink library in tokyo celebrates 30 years of acne paper

Acne Studios transforms Tokyo’s art gallery StandBy Harajuku into the Acne Paper Pink Library, a temporary public reading room marking the release of Acne Paper Issue 21: Autoportrait and the 30th anniversary of the Swedish fashion house. The installation invites visitors to browse the latest issue of Acne Paper, its archive, and a curated selection of books chosen by Tokyo bookstore POST, bringing together fashion, art, architecture, design, and publishing under one roof.

At StandBy Harajuku, the intervention embraces the gallery’s exposed concrete architecture with a monochromatic pink interior. A continuous built-in sofa wraps the perimeter of the space around low tables stacked with books and magazines, creating an environment intended for reading and browsing instead of retail. Large street-facing windows turn the library into an open display, inviting passersby inside.

all images courtesy of Acne Studios

AUTOPORTRAIT BEYOND THE PRINTED PAGE

The Tokyo installation forms part of a wider international program taking place across Tokyo, Paris, London, Shanghai, and New York between June 25th and July 5th, 2026. Each city hosts its own version of the Acne Paper Pink Library, adapting the concept to a different urban setting, celebrating the creative atmosphere that has shaped Acne Studios since its founding in Stockholm in 1996. In Paris, a kiosk along the Seine presents books and objects in collaboration with Delpire & Co, while London transforms a traditional telephone box in Soho Square into a miniature pink library curated by Claire de Rouen Books.

The libraries accompany the publication of Autoportrait, the twenty-first issue of Acne Paper, conceived as a self-portrait of the creative community that has grown around the fashion house over the past three decades. The anniversary edition brings together four self-portrait portfolios by Jordan Hemingway, Guinevere van Seenus, Malick Bodian, and Katerina Jebb, alongside an archive story photographed by Casper Sejersen and styled by George Krakowiak. Interviews with Sadie Coles, Honey Dijon, Max Lamb, Viviane Sassen, Robbie Barrat, and Lena Endre appear alongside essays by Natasha Fraser, Mark Holgate, Johanna Agerman Ross, Xerxes Cook, Ben Evans, Frances Armstrong Jones, and Vince Aletti.

The anniversary celebrations also extend to Acne Paper Palais Royal in Paris, where A Blank Canvas, an exhibition by Carlijn Jacobs, presents photographs created for the cover story of Autoportrait. Installed as a working studio, the exhibition explores painting, movement, and performance, expanding the themes introduced in the publication.

Acne Studios transforms StandBy Harajuku into the Acne Paper Pink Library