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Meet the Artists Behind Vision Gate to Japan’s Art Exhibition
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In these unprecedented times, exploring and understanding new cultures has been put on hold of the foreseeable future. However this time has permitted a unique example of creativity where our constraints have allowed us to get inventive. With eight Japanese artists, two major airports, and one goal of expressing Japan’s rich culture to its visitors, the Agency for Cultural Affairs, Government of Japan has backed a series of digital art exhibitions housed across country’s main airports. Curated by Paola Antonelli, the exhibition aims to create an experience for visitors from leaving the gate to exiting the terminal that gives a look into how the Japan’s history has informed the present. Check out all the artists part of VISION GATE to Japan and what their pieces say about their culture.
“Crowd Cloud” by YURI SUZUKI & MIYU HOSOI
What do you think your exhibition says about Japanese culture?
MH: “Japanese culture represents the beauty of sum, which means a collection of individuals.”
YS: “I was born and raised in Japan, which gives me a strong sense of Japanese characteristics and way of thinking. Crowd Cloud was curated by Paola Antonelli and having her input and insight has been extremely valuable. She positions Japan as ‘far east’; something curious, something exotic and something different from western culture. This resonates with me as I currently live in the UK and have lived in other countries within Europe as well as the United States. This has allowed me to experience both sides. From the perspective of the ‘far east’ me, Japan is organized, has the capability to adapt and is modestly greedy (in a good way). From the perspective of ‘Western’ me, Japan is catchy and pop whilst the modern and traditional live harmoniously. These parallels were the starting point for creating the concept for Crowd Cloud. Firstly, the Japanese language is uniquely bold making it instantly recognisable. The Japanese language does not contain a lot of vowels (only 5) making pronunciation simpler. It also makes the language seem familiar to others around the world as the majority of languages share a, e, I, o, u vowel sounds. Secondly, would be craftsmanship. Japan is well known and respected for sophisticated craft techniques. We are very lucky to have worked with craftsmen in Nagaoka for anodizing. Which adds an additional aesthetic layer on this installation and creates a very strong presence for this installation.”
What was your process like?
MH: “In this work, I was in charge of sound, but I was conscious that the flow of time at the airport was slower than the one in everyday life. If this installation were exhibited in the middle of a city where people were acting busily, we would have to make something more straightforward and telling at a glance, but this time we wanted send our messages through sound in a slow and steady manner to visitors and audience to the airport. There are already a lot of sounds at the airport, such as announcements, chimes, and the voices of people going to and from the airport. In combination with such complicated sounds, we aimed for a sound which makes viewers and audience a part of this work. In addition, I wanted Japanese visitors and audiences to be able to recognize Japanese sounds, so I sampled about 7,000 Hiragana files with my own voice for the purpose of separating their meaning from sound and made it realized by reconstructing them in a program. Just as the voices of the people who speak around the work can also be part of the work, the Japanese fragments (hiragana) that sound from each horn are played at as much volume as our spoken voices.”
YS: “First of all Paola’s word ‘VISION GATE’ is a very simple but effective word choice. The airport is the gate to Japan, also the first opportunity to experience Japanese culture. That was the concept brief. Then came conceptual research, including history, relation between far east Japan and other countries. Also, I feel the importance of including our current pandemic time. We are in close contact with one another, artist, curators, production, airport side were all very honest to exchange comments.”
What did you want viewers to learn about Japanese culture from your piece in the exhibit?
YS: “My favorite aspect and characteristic of “Japanese sound/Japan’s sound” is that we
see the beauty in harmony. It does not focus on the one sound as “the frontman” but the aesthetics lies in the harmonious collections of simple individual sound. The airport is truly the place where diverse people gather, and I wanted to create something to symbolize this. I would like to tell the audience about this aesthetics/idea of “harmonious collection of individuals”, one of many Japanese culture’s uniqueness, and that we are equally valued as the same “people with the language” regardless of nationality through this work.”
What do you hope viewers take away from the exhibit as a whole?
MH: “The aim of this work was not only to convey Japanese culture to people overseas,
but also to help Japanese people re-recognize Japan as one of the countries in the world. I think that it is a place where we can imply such idea to those Japanese and non-Japanese. This work is a soundscape of a Japanese airport, so that I made it based on Japanese language, but I really think it’s good to include other languages spoken by the viewers and audience. I think that’s the world. Also, once you notice the possibility of expansion of the work that the viewers and audience can be a part of the work, the whole airport can also be a work. I hope this work will symbolize the soundscape of the airport”
YS: “From this piece, I wanted to create an opportunity to realize/discover some similarities even in different races, cultures, countries. In this installation, it is about language: any language shares A.I.U.E.O sound. If it is constructed randomly, some people can find/hear similarity in language. I feel the recent division on race and country is about not understanding similarity and lack of communications. As the airport is often a place to meet or confront people from other countries, I hope this installation can read people’s interests and feel similar to other countries.”
“Kojiki – Amenomanai” by MARIKO MORI
What do you think your exhibition says about Japanese culture?
We have a culture deeply rooted in our long history and it has been inherited well, carried from generation to generation. The image is upside down as it is a reflection on the water. The image which we see is not necessarily real. Often, it is an illusion. The Japanese culture also embraces this.
What was your process like?
“The video was inspired by the oldest record of ancient matters, Kojiki. The images are made by computer graphics using motions capture technology. It was my wish to bring the oldest creation myth of Japan alive and also remind us that the tradition is still relevant in the current culture as purification is considered a fundamental attitude to exhibit our respect.”
What do you hope viewers take away from the exhibit as a whole?
“The figure in the video is purifying the sword with sacred water. Purification is part of Japanese traditional culture which you could find in Shinto Shrine, tea ceremony etc. The gesture of purification is not only to clean the hands but also the mind. In fact, it is more significant to purify our spirit than physicality. It is a way to contemplate and reflect our mind.”
“Gravity Garden” by SACHIKO KODAMA
What do you think your exhibition says about Japanese culture?
“We would like to convey the idea that nature and scenery can be visualized by objects, the beauty of Japanese formality, layered hues and an orientation towards light will be translated into moving.”
What was your process like?
“I fully understood [Paola’s] idea of the relationship between “vision” and “creativity” when I referred to my past experiences and intuition. Immediately after having discussions with Paola, I created a work of combination of old and new, futuristic images (unknown planetary gardens) and Japanese aesthetics (mitate/vision, yohaku/margins, shikisai/colors) by using the techniques for magnetic fluid sculpture. I used electromagnets to move a large number of thorns and patterns of magnetic fluids using a special magnetic field when I created “Magnetic fluid sculpture” which remains a strong visual impact with a dazzling light effect and visually intense impression. After preparing the object, I made a video of the “Garden of Gravity” with the image of an unknown planet’s garden visible, likening the display to a window. In depth, gravity and magnetic force will exist universally on any planet in this universe. Visitors to the airport see a mysterious garden with objects arranged in a Japanese style, with organic spines like magnetic fluid plants moving in the vision in the window.”
What do you hope viewers take away from the exhibit as a whole?
“I created a work with a vision that connects old and new, creating a garden that feels a Japanese formal beauty, a pyrogenic box garden (a mountain of magnetic fluid and a sea on a gold leaf tray) by using a new material called fluorescent magnetic fluid and technology. It would be greatly appreciated if you could feel the intense aesthetics and spirituality lurking in the structure that seems simple and simple at first. I hope that everyone who visits Japan will experience and feel the meaning of “VISION GATE” at the airport where every traveler abroad passes and it will be a fresh experience that will make themselves different, such as entering a unique “knot” through the work of Japanese artists.
“Day of a Full Moon” by MONIKA MOGI
What do you think your exhibition says about Japanese culture?
“I wanted to take the viewer on a journey through Japan’s otherworldly and mystical landscapes such as Onioshidashi volcanic stone rocks and natural geothermal hot springs such as Owakudani and Kusatsu Onsen. The friends I have decided to use in the piece are my closest friends and women who inspire me. Sayaka is wearing her mother’s most prized kimono and playing her late grandmother’s shamisen. Kiko is wearing a kimono suit that my grandmother created from an upcycled kimono. Each piece is deeply personal and the full moon symbolizes magic in reality.”
What was your process like?
“I wanted to make a piece in the style I usually do: editing, directing, shooting entirely on my own. I used my 16mm camera, which only shoots two minutes per roll, so I decided to work with those limitations because I find I can capture raw moments easier. I wanted to have my friends involved in the project and we used this opportunity to seek out places we found mystical. It was really a fun time.”
What did you want viewers to learn about Japanese culture from your piece in the exhibit?
“To feel the strength and pure love that I put in my work. To admire the natural landscapes that you can only find here. I love Paola’s vision and to be included amongst legendary artists such as Mariko Mori and Sachiko Kodama truly inspired me. I hope viewers feel the inspiration of our works.”
“Hitoshobu (One Shot)” by JUN INOUE
What do you think your exhibition says about Japanese culture?
“It is clean and beautiful, and it seems that too much can be as bad as too little.”
What was your process like?
“What is on the screen is the scenery that I have seen so far, and in order for me as an artist, to settle exactly 100% of them on the screen, I have to pay attention to keep my body and soul healthy by meditating myself. Once I make myself vacant, I start drawing by intuition.”
What do you hope viewers take away from the exhibit as a whole?
“The margins are the margins of the mind and the openness of the mind to accept. By drawing repeatedly, beautiful lines are created. Japanese culture is the ultimate beauty as a result of endless imagination and discipline. Japanese are full of curiosity, they have studied, absorbed, sublimated many foreign cultures and have built up their own culture. I would be happy if viewers could feel that Japanese culture is a mixture of the culture of everyone in the world. I would like Japanese who are becoming steeped in a global society to see my works and other works as well as travelers from abroad.”
“Theme Park Tokyo” by ACKY BRIGHT
What do you think your exhibition says about Japanese culture?
“As Paola says, Japan is a country with a unique culture in a world where tradition and innovation coexist. The moment I read her text about VISION GATE, I realized this again. For example, in Japan, we anthropomorphize real traditional Japanese swords, spin stories as fiction based on their characters, and create new content as games, which has produced for millions of fans, and as a result, such fans have jumped over the virtual world of games and visited places where real Japanese swords are dedicated throughout Japan. Through this circulation, many people can learn deeply about history and legend in Japan. I believe that this is the greatest characteristic and attractiveness of Japanese culture.”
What was your process like?
“I thought about how I could impress people from different countries, languages, and cultures while making use of manga, as Japan’s latest and typical culture. I thought various things when I wrote and made a video as I tried to create a style that excludes lines and panels that limit the number of people who see it, onomatope looks cool as a design, so let’s leave it behind. Therefore, I came up with the thought of composing based on ancient Japanese picture scrolls such as “Bird and Animal Caricature, we call them Chow-Ju-Ga”, which is also the roots of manga. Instead of drawing with a pen on paper, it was drawn only on a mobile tablet device on time-lapse. In other words, I expressed tradition and innovation in the production process of my work.”
What did you want viewers to learn about Japanese culture from your piece in the exhibit?
“In this work, Sharakui depicts actors, and the large head paintings were originally made and used for the purpose of advertisements in modern times. That’s why I created this work called “Theme Park Tokyo” because I want to convey that everything that spreads in front of me is considered as “culture” and “art”. I want you to watch it repeatedly, enjoy Japanese culture in detail, and imagine and create something new with you. I hope my work will make people descending from the airport to Japan excited and uplifted. “Welcome to Theme Park Tokyo” is my message, what I made was the city of Tokyo as a theme park. The confluence point of the expressway is likened to a large snake named “Yamata no Orochi” that appears in Japanese mythology, the town of Shibuya is Tetris, Youkai lurks in temples and shrines, Samurais become robots, and these, of course, do not exist in reality, but they are also what are visible to some people. I would like to convey the joy of Tokyo to those from child to seniors in an easy-to-understand manner. When they walk through the exit gate, I would feel extremely happy if they will be like, “Oh my God, is this the place that was in Acky’s picture?”
“TSUGI” by PARTY
What do you think your exhibition says about Japanese culture?
“Lately, the word “resilience” is frequently used. “TSUGI” embodies how the power to restore and be resilient has been ceaselessly inherited by the Japanese, and this spirituality is perhaps at the core of the Japanese aesthetic.”
What was your process like?
During a discussion with Paola Antonelli, the curator of this project, she had mentioned, “From an outsider perspective, Japan is truly a visionary country.” When I heard that comment, I couldn’t believe my ears. I had to ask, “I’m surprised to hear that other countries think that way of Japan. Most Japanese people would honestly believe otherwise. What do you mean by ‘visionary’?” Paola responded, “In contrast to Western countries, Japan has a vision that encourages the coexistence of the past and the present, the old and the new, by connecting them.” I remember being mind-blown and inspired by her answer. My team created this work with inspirations from Paola’s thoughts as a starting point.
What do you hope viewers take away from the exhibit as a whole?
“The theme of “TSUGI” is global warming caused by excessive human interference with nature. We used actual satellite images to express a glimmer of hope by depicting the Earth and nature being repaired with “kintsugi,” an aesthetic born from the resilient spirit of the Japanese people. For such a special situation, we made “TSUGI” with the wish that it will comfort and replenish tired travelers after their long journeys.”
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createdAt:Tue, 30 Mar 2021 22:31:05 +0000
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