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DIVERSITY IN THE ARTS "Museum of Together Exhibition"

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AIT is pleased to participate in hosting an exhibition at the Spiral Garden(Aoyama,Tokyo) from October 13 (Friday) - October 31 (Tuesday), 2017 as part of the The Nippon Foundation DIVERSITY IN THE ARTS Project.

The "Museum of Together" exhibition consists of artworks by 22 artists created in many different environments, including special care facilities, ateliers, private residences, and studios, as well as an archive of various materials and models.
We look forward to your support and attendance at this special exhibition.

For details of the exhibition, please see Exhibition Official website.


The Nippon Foundation DIVERSITY IN THE ARTS
Museum of Together Exhibition
October 13(Friday) -October 31(Tuesday), 2017

Outsider Art and Contemporary Art, Experience 22 Different Worlds of Art
A Museum Open to Everyone

Venue: Spiral Garden (Spiral 1F)
Opening Hours: 11:00-20:00 Free admission / Open every day

* Open until 18:00 on October 13 (Friday)

MOTO

Download our official press release (Only Japanese available) (PDF)

[ Curators Message ]

The Museum of Together is a temporary museum showing art works and archives by 22 participants. The artists live and work in many different kinds of contexts; from being professional artists with gallery representation, artists who work in special care atelier facilities, artists who work at home and artists who teach in special schools. The motivations and intentions of the artists are diverse. Some have a deep awareness of art history, some make art to feel better and maintain health and balance, some sell their works and others ask that their works are thrown away after being completed.

What brings them together is an intensity of feeling and vision about art-making that is rooted in desires beyond simply the ego personality. Here art may emerge from despair, ecstasy, isolation, joy and varying degrees of altered states of consciousness. Although we can explain many aspects of their art through words, there are also many aspects that invite us to adopt different kinds of attention and sensibility. The Museum of Together tries to think about art as an active tool to generate and maintain psychic and spiritual wellbeing. This is not something special to only a certain kind of art such as Outsider Art, or an art that can be spoken about simplistically as 'pure' or 'raw'. It has been a crucial aspect of all art, from religious art to the many modern and contemporary expressions of what we can call 'spirituality' in art.

The art works are not only tools for the artists who create them, but crucially have the radical potential to be of use to all of us. The Museum of Together invites you to become an active part of the exhibition, not only through reading the accompanying captions, but through careful looking and letting different desires flow inside you. One of the aims of this exhibition is to appeal to as broad an audience as possible. In this regard we held many discussions from the initial planning stages with people with hearing, physical and visual disabilities. The exhibition design and Access Art Program have been planned with this in mind, and hopefully we have created a 'set and setting' appropriate for the art works to connect among themselves, the soul of the viewers and the wider society. We hope that the exhibition is used by the audience and that its affects resonate widely.

Roger McDonald / Yuko Shiomi


[OUTLINE]

Organized by The Nippon Foundation
Produced by The Nippon Foundation DIVERSITY IN THE ARTS
Supervised by Arts Initiative Tokyo [AIT]
Planning cooperation: Spiral
Venue cooperation: Wacoal Art Center Co., Ltd.

Curators: Roger McDonald, Yuko Shiomi [AIT]
Exhibition Space Design: Atelier Bow-Wow
Exhibition Graphic Design: So Hashizume
Editorial Design: Eri Ishida
Learning Program Planning: ABLE ART JAPAN
Learning Program Support: Viewing Artwork Together with People with Visual Disabilities, Art and Sign Language Project, Mori Art Museum

Artists:
Satoru Aoyama, Fumito Urabe, Emi, Rikako Kawauchi, Christian Hidaka, Kazuko Komatsu, Chiaki Shimizu, Chiharu Shimizu, Nobuko Tsuchiya, Masahiko Tsuchiya, Sayaka Teraguchi, Peter McDonald, Yuki Fujioka, Hideo Furutani, Kayo Horie, Nao Matsunaga, Masataka Mizuuchi, Mizunoki Archives, Masaki Mori, Koichi Yashima, Ryunosuke, Yoshihiro Watanabe

Special Food Menu: Yuri Nomura (eatrip), Kako Osada (foodremedies)

Research Curators: Toru Akaogi (atelier A), Kaoru Ouchi (Arts Council Niigata), Takayoshi Okabe (Hajimari Art Center), Taro Okabe (Tanpopo-no-ye), Riko Okuyama (Mizunoki Museum of Art, Kameoka), Mari Chiba, Akigo Tsuguchi (Tomonotsu Museum), Shihoko Matsumoto (Warakoh Museum), Yoshiyuki Morioka (Morioka Shoten), Masato Yamashita (Atelier Yamanami)

Cooperation: MIZUMA ART GALLERY, Yamanami-kai Social Welfare Corporation, Atelier Yamanami, GALLERY SIDE 2, WAITINGROOM, General Incorporation Foundation Tanpopo-no-ye, Wataboshi-no-kai Social Welfare Corporation, atelier A, SCAI THE BATHHOUSE, Hiroshima Central School for Special Support, Yukai Co., Ltd. studio COOCA, Yamato-kai Social Welfare Corporation ,Yamato Kogen Taiyo-no-ie, Palette-kai Social Welfare Corporation, Palette Tatsuno, Mizunoki Museum of Art, Kameoka

[ WEBSITE ]

Exhibition Official Website
The Nippon Foundation DIVERSITY IN THE ARTS Official Website


[ CONTACT ]

Exhibition Information
Museum of Together Exhibition Office
Showa Uchikanda Building 7F, 1-12-3 Uchikanda, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-0047
The Nippon Foundation DIVERSITY IN THE ARTS
Tel: 03-5577-6750
Email: moto@diversity-in-the-arts.jp

Venue Information
Spiral/ Wacoal Art Center Co., Ltd.
5-6-23 Minami-Aoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo, 107-0062
Tel: 03-3498-1171

2017-10-10

THE BAR Vol.10 Exhibition "Shaping Voices, Silent Skies"

>>> Japanese

The Backers Foundation and AIT residence programme Vol.10
"Shaping Voices, Silent Skies"
New works by Miti Ruangkritya (Thailand) and Sarah Abu Abdallah (Saudi Arabia)


Saturday, July 1 - Monday (National Holiday), July 17, 2017
Hours: 11:00 - 20:00 *Free Admission / Open daily
8/ ART GALLERY/ Tomio Koyama Gallery (Shibuya Hikarie 8F, Tokyo)
Opening Reception: 18:00 - 20:00 on Saturday, July 1

Artist Talk: 14:00 - 16:00 on Saturday, July 8 at 8/ COURT

*Booking Required/Consecutive translation available

Click here for more details



The BAR Vol.10

The BAR Vol. 10「Shaping Voices, Silent Skies」Exhibition Flyer, Designed by Yasutaka Fukuoka
[Top] Sarah Abu Abdallah / Still from the study for new video work, 2017, Courtesy of the artist
[Bottom] Miti Ruangkritya / "Imagining Flood", 2011, Giclée print on archival paper, Courtesy of the artist



Exhibition flyer Download(PDF / 680KB)



The Backers Foundation and AIT will co-present "Shaping Voices, Silent Skies", an exhibition held from July 1 (Sat) to July 17 (Mon, National holiday) at 8/ ART GALLERY/ Tomio Koyama Gallery. This exhibition marks the 10th edition that the Backers Foundation and AIT have partnered on a joint residency programme that invites international artists to Tokyo, this year welcoming Miti Ruangkritya from Thailand, and Sarah Abu Abdallah from Saudi Arabia to present their works show for the first time in Japan, in addition to new works created during their stay in Tokyo.

Working mainly with photography and images from the Internet, Bangkok-based Miti Ruangkritya focuses on the environmental changes caused by rapid development that have occurred in urban areas of Thailand in recent years, in addition to the desires of city dwellers, and the tumult, silence and other shifting moods of the city itself.
In Imagining Flood (2011), one of the artist's representative works, Ruangkritya presents a disquieting night-time scene of Bangkok whose streets appear silent and deserted. Filmed on a day when the capital suffered damage from floods, it heightens the strangeness of the city and our fear of nature to an almost fantastical level.

In recent years Sarah Abu Abdallah, a young artist from Saudi Arabia who has gained attention in international exhibitions such as the Sharjah Biennale 11 (2013), has produced video works that incorporate thought processes particular to painting, a field in which she received training. In the video work SAUDI AUTOMOBILE (2012) the figure of Abu Abdallah, is filmed as she silently applies whitish-pink paint to an abandoned car. As reflected in the artist's comment, "This wishful gesture was the only way I could get myself a car," the work reveals the artist's focus of attention: the gender norms of a nation where women are prohibited to drive cars.

What the artist have in common is that, although they sense the illusions generated by globalized cities and societies, and the realities that lie behind them, their work expresses quiet criticism rather than conflict. While reflecting the social situation in which we find ourselves, their expressions reveal an attitude that consciously avoids integration into political and gender stereotypes.
In addition to works shown for the first time in Japan, in this exhibition Ruangkritya will superimpose images of urban development in Bangkok with those of Tokyo, and Shibuya in particular where development is visibly advancing, in order to suggest a hidden sense of anxiety toward environment pollution that such urbanization may cause, while Abu Abdallah has conceived dreamscapes inspired by Japanese anime and Manga.

We hope you will share in our anticipation to see how the artists respond to the city's whispers during their three-month residency.

Texts by Naoko Horiuchi [AIT] / Translated by Jaime Humphreys


The BAR (The Backers Foundation and AIT Residence Programme) Vol. 10
"Shaping Voices, Silent Skies"
New works by Miti Ruangkritya (Thailand) and Sarah Abu Abdallah (Saudi Arabia)

Saturday, July 1 - Monday/National holiday July 17, 2017
Hours: 11:00 - 20:00 *Free Admission / Open daily
8/ ART GALLERY/ Tomio Koyama Gallery
Shibuya Hikarie 8F, 2-21-1 Shibuya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo

Organised by Arts Initiative Tokyo (AIT)
Co-organized by The Backers Foundation
Supported by 8/ ART GALLERY/ Tomio Koyama Gallery, Ponte Vecchio Hotta Corporation
Opening Reception: Friday, June 30, 18:00 - 20:00

Artist Talk: Saturday, July 8, 14:00 - 16:00 at 8/ COURT (Shibuya Hikarie 8F)
*Booking Required/Consecutive translation available (Click here for more details)

Please send us an email with following information
To: event@tomiokoyamagallery.com (Please input @ in normal-width)
Subject: "July 8, Artist Talk"
Body: Name, Contact number, A number of participant(s)
*Reservations are made on a first-come, first-served basis.


[ Artist Information ]

Miti Ruangkritya
(b.1981, lives and works in Bangkok, Thailand)

Ruangkritya is a Thai based image maker. His work focuses on an issue or a topic surrounding his life. In particular, the city often surfaces as a dominant subject - from its environments and people and to its transformation and growth.
The series of his work entitled, Imagining Flood (2011) examines ideas surrounding fear, imagination and anticipation amongst city dwellers - tensions which were palpable when Bangkok was struck by severe flooding. The project explores and represents these themes through disquieting, otherworldly night-time landscapes. His most recent series of works, Dream Property (2014-ongoing) examines the nature of property development and its relationship with human ideals and aspirations. The series includes the images of land undergoing commercial development as well as images of newly built condos entering Bangkok's real estate market; whilst Excerpts from Bangkok Real Estate Advertising explores the use of texts within this context by focusing on the exuberant slogans that habitually accompany real estate advertising.


・ 2016-17 "LANDSCAPE: Hotel Asia Project" (Traveled from Gallery Soap, Fukuoka to China, Thailand and Tokyo University of the Arts, Japan)
・ 2016 "Omnivoyeur" - a visual and sound project with Christina Kubisch (Bangkok Art and Cultural Center, Thailand)
・ 2016 "Dream Property" (Bangkok CityCity Gallery, Thailand)
・ 2016 "The Archive as Conversation" (Singapore Photography Festival, Singapore)
・ 2016 "Urban and Reflections: Contemporary Thai Photography" (Otterbein University, Ohio, USA)



Sarah Abu Abdallah
(b.1990, lives and works in Qatif, Saudi Arabia)

Abu Abudallah lives and works in Qatif, Saudi Arabia and studied art in both Rhode Island school of design for her masters in digital media, and in the college of art and design in University of Sharjah. She is an artist and a puzzle-maker who works across a variety of media include video, installation, poetry and images.


・ 2017 "Screening: Selected 7" (Whitechapel Gallery London)
・ 2016 "Serpentine's Miracle Marathon" (Serpentine Gallery, London)
・ 2016 "LISTE" Performance Program with Keren Cytter (Basel, Switzerland)
・ 2016 "The Salad Zone and other videos" (Sarah Lawrence College, New York)
・ 2015 "CO-WORKERS" (Musée d'Art Moderne, Paris)




About Backers Foundation
The Backers Foundation is a private group of patrons from the business world who first joined together in 1994 to provide support for the Japan Animal Welfare Society. Since then, the 60 members have funded a variety of organisations. They also participate in self-organised committees set up for projects to which they volunteer their personal time under the motto of enjoying the good things. One of these efforts is a terakoya, or after-hours school for children, that the foundation has operated since 2005.
Through the BAR (Backers and AIT Residence Programme) series, 18 artists, 7 curators and 2 editors have been invited from countries including the USA, the UK, the Netherlands, Afghanistan, Brazil, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Argentina, India, Kenya, Morocco, Indonesia, Cambodia, Costa Rica, Poland and Pakistan.



Further Information
Exhibition Enquiries
8/ ART GALLERY/ Tomio Koyama Gallery
Tel: 03-6434-1493

Backers Foundation/Artist-in-Residence Enquiries
Arts Initiative Tokyo [AIT]
Tel: 03-5489-7277

2017-5-29

THE BAR Vol.9 Exhibition "Healing and Loving"

>>> Japanese

The Backers Foundation and AIT residence programme vol.9
"Healing and Loving"
New works by Chaw Ei Thein (Myanmar/Burma) and Krishnapriya Tharmakrishnar (Sri Lanka)

Saturday, July 9 through Saturday, July 23 at YAMAMOTO GENDAI (Shirokane-Takanawa, Tokyo)
Opening Reception: 6pm - 8pm on Saturday, July 9

Artist Talk: 7pm - 9pm on Wednesday, July 13 at Daikanyama AIT Room

*Booking Required (For details and to book, click here)



The BAR vol.9
[Left] Chaw Ei Thein "What a wonderful world #6", 2015, Acrylic painting on camouflage fabric
[Right] Krishnapriya Tharmakrishnar "Artifacts from Jaffna", 2013, Nail Drawing on paper


Press release Download(PDF / 500KB)


Exhibition flyer Download(PDF / 1.6MB)


Artists interview Download(PDF / 2.5MB)

The exhibition marks the 9th time that The Backers Foundation and AIT have partnered on their joint residency programme and will present works by two women artists, Chaw Ei Thein from Myanmar/Burma and Krishnapriya Tharmakrishnar from Sri Lanka.

Chaw Ei Thein (born in Myanmar/Burma, 1969) has been a prominent artist working in Myanmar, also known as Burma for many years, creating paintings, sculptures and provocative public performances which comment on the situation of women's experiences in a situation of brutal oppression and dictatorship. Chaw Ei Thein is currently in exile in New York and was unable to return to her country until the recent democratic elections in Myanmar/Burma.

Krishnapriya Tharmakrishnar (born in Sri Lanka, 1987) is an emerging artist based in the Northern Sri Lankan city of Jaffna, which experienced fierce fighting during the civil war. The loss of family members and home forms a powerful ground for her works which largely take the form of paper based drawings and prints. She says: "Dots make Lines, Lines make Diagrams, Lines also show the direction of my life, my past, my dreams, my selection, my losses and gains".

Although both artists make works rooted in experiences and memories related to war, loss and insecurity it is also true to say that their artistic expressions are gestures for reconciliation and love for all people. They express powerful commitments to the experiences of women and mothers, engaging deeply with materials.

The BAR vol.9 exhibition, "Healing and Loving" will show a mix of older works with new works made in Tokyo including camouflage based paintings and painted found wood pieces by Chaw Ei Thein and almost invisible white nail drawings and new sculptural pieces by Krishnapriya Tharmakrishnar.

We look forward to your attendance at this special exhibition.

The BAR (The Backers Foundation and AIT Residence Programme) vol. 9
New works by Chaw Ei Thein (Myanmar/Burma) and Krishnapriya Tharmakrishnar (Sri Lanka)
"Healing and Loving"


YAMAMOTO GENDAI, 3F, 3-1-15 Shirokane, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Saturday, July 9 - Saturday July 23, 2016 / Free Admission
Open daily from 11am - 7pm / Closed on Sunday, Monday and National holidays
Organised by Arts Initiative Tokyo (AIT)
Co-organized by The Backers Foundation
Supported by YAMAMOTO GENDAI and LOKO GALLERY
Opening Reception from 6pm - 8pm on Saturday, July 9 (7pm- Performance by Chaw Ei Thein)

Artist Talk from 7pm - 9pm on Wednesday, July 13 at Daikanyama AIT Room
*Booking Required (For details and to book, click here)




[ Artist Information ]

Chaw Ei Thein (born in Myanmar/Burma, 1969)

Chaw Ei Thein was born in Myanmar/Burma and currently based in New York. Her Artistic recognition started at an early age through numerous international art awards that she has received. With her father, Artist Maung Maung Thein (Pathein), as her art teacher and a mentor, Chaw Ei's artistic practice has developed in diverse ways, becoming a highly regarded painter and performance artist. Her international career is highly profiled as she candidly portrays the contradictions and conflicts of her socio-political environment. Her artworks are primarily the interpretation of her personal experience over how she has struggled with the lack of freedom of speech and the impact of social transformation.

Selected Exhibitions:
・2008 "Wonder, Singapore Biennale 2008" (Singapore)
・2010 "Stories Out of Burma" (Thavibu Gallery, Bangkok, Thailand)
・2011 "ARTLIVE2011" (CATM Chelsea Gallery, New York, USA)
・2013 "Works on Paper 2013: Japan-U.S. Art Exchange Exhibition" (Ishikawa and Tokyo, Japan)
・2015 "My Country, Asia Week New York" (Shalini Ganandra Fine Art, New York, USA)
・2015 "Building Histories" (Goethe Institute, Rangoon, Myanmar/Burma)

Chaw Ei Thein
Performance by Chaw Ei Thein, 2012, Rapid Pulse International Performance Art Festival, Chicago USA [reference image]

ChawEiThein
"Bodhi Budha" , 2015, Acrylic on fibre glass, 304mm×152mm×419mm [reference image]

Chaw Ei Thein
"We are in Burma" Performance, 2004 [reference image]





Krishnapriya Tharmakrishnar (born in Sri Lanka, 1987)
Krishnapriya Tharmakrishnar lives and works in Jaffna, Sri Lanka. Tharmakrishnar's practice traces the losses of those she has missed in her past, and also acts as reminders for forgotten memories and a sense of self. She works mainly with drawing, painting, collage and drawing using nails pressed on paper and board without any distinctive colour. Many dots and lines outline her individuality and identity from particular times of her life such as childhood, emphasizing an inner-heart empathy.

Selected Exhibitions:
・2013 "Batach 2009" Group Exhibition (University of Jaffna, Jaffna, Sri Lanka)
・2013 "Artifacts from Jaffna" Group Exhibition conducted by Asia Art Archive (Colombo, Sri Lanka)
・2014 "Drawing Exhibition" Group Exhibition (University of Jaffna, Sri Lanka)
・2015 "Seven Conversation" Group Exhibition (Saskia Fernando Gallery, Colombo, Sri Lanka)
・2015 "Truth to Truth" Group Exhibition (JDA Perera Gallery, Colombo, Sri Lanka)


Krishnapriya_Tharmakrishnar
"My Birth", 2015, Drawing on paper, ink [reference image]


Krishnapriya_Tharmakrishnar
"Richness", 2015, Nail Drawing on tracing paper [reference image]

Krishnapriya_Tharmakrishnar
"Artifacts from Jaffna" , 2013, Nail Drawing on paper, carbon paper




About Backers Foundation
The Backers Foundation is a private group of patrons from the business world who first joined together in 1994 to provide support for the Japan Animal Welfare Society. Since then, the 60 members have funded a variety of organisations. They also participate in self-organised committees set up for projects to which they volunteer their personal time under the motto of enjoying the good things. One of these efforts is a terakoya, or after-hours school for children, that the foundation has operated since 2005. Through the BAR (Backers and AIT Residence Programme) series, 16 artists, 7 curators and 2 editors have been invited from countries including the USA, the UK, the Netherlands, Afghanistan, Brazil, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Argentina, India, Kenya, Morocco, Indonesia, Cambodia.



Further Information
Press Enquiries
YAMAMOTO GENDAI
Tel: 03-6383-0626 / i@yamamotogendai.org

Backers Foundation/Artist-in-Residence Enquiries
Ms. Yoda and Mr. Tokairin at Arts Initiative Tokyo
Tel: 03-5489-7277 / otoiawase@a-i-t.net

2016-6- 3

THE BAR Vol.8 Exhibition "Today of Yesterday" Rattana Vandy and Kanitha Tith

>>> Japanese

The Backers Foundation and AIT residence programme vol.8
"Today of Yesterday" New works by RATTANA VANDY and KANITHA TITH, Cambodia

Saturday, July 11 - Saturday, July 25 at YAMAMOTO GENDAI (Shirokane-Takanawa, Tokyo)
Opening Reception: 6pm - 8pm on Saturday, July 11


The BAR vol.8
Left: Rattana Vandy "Bomb Ponds", 2009/ Right: Kanitha Tith "Companions", 2011, Photo by Rattana Vandy


Exhibition flier Download(PDF / 3.3MB)


Artists interview Download(PDF / 3.3MB)
Interview by Ben Davis


The exhibition will mark the 8th time that The Backers Foundation and AIT have partnered on their joint residency programme and will present works by two Cambodian artists in residence, Rattana Vandy and Kanitha Tith.

Vandy is an artist who utilises video and photography to create works that touch on history and memory. A self taught photographer, he has featured in international exhibitions such as "dOCUMENTA (13)" and is currently showing alongside other emerging artists at "TIME of OTHERS", Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo. With experience as a journalist, his previous works include "Preah Vihear", a photographic series showing the modest everyday circumstances of soldiers involved in border disputes, and "Bomb Ponds", a photo-based project that documented the ponds that have emerged at sites bombed by the US military during the Vietnam War.

Vandy takes a poetic approach to interpreting fragmented memories and remnants of human existence, in turn offering an alternative perspective on history. For this exhibition, he will present "Bomb Ponds" and "MONOLOGUE", the latter being his latest video work that is based on the stories of the people who lost their lives during the 1970s' Khmer Rouge era. Furthermore, "Shadow in the Dark", a new work produced in Tokyo that comprises of poetry and sculpture made from countless nails - a reflection upon the emotions and spirituality of the inner self.

Tith is an artist who produces works across a range of media including sculpture, installation, video and performance. In 2010 she received an honourable mention at the inaugural You Khin Memorial Women's Art Prize, an award that recognizes contributions to improving the rights and social status of women in Cambodia. Two years later she participated in "SurViVart", a community project aimed at promoting art and dialogue in Cambodia, for which she invited people to gather and exchange ideas at her house in Phnom Penh.

Tith's thin wire sculptures are delicate and powerful monuments that she creates through a near-meditative process, not only as an examination of her own memories and experiences, but also a reflection on the impact of her country's social circumstances. For this exhibition, Tith will present a new sculptural work based on her research questioning about the relation to the interpretation of "Spirit" in Southeast Asian ritual culture.

Like much of Southeast Asia, Cambodia has experienced rapid economic and social changes in recent years. On the other hand, complex social circumstances and historical oblivion have resulted in few opportunities to learn of the country's hidden imagination. Influenced by the ephemeral things that emerge from society and time, the fresh perspectives of today's young artists can give weight to the idea of today being a continuation of the past.

We look forward to your support and attendance at this special exhibition.

About the Exhibition
The BAR(The Backers Foundation and AIT Residence Programme)vol. 8
"Today of Yesterday" New works by RATTANA VANDY and KANITHA TITH, Cambodia
YAMAMOTO GENDAI, 3F, 3-1-15 Shirokane, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Saturday, July 11 - Saturday July 25, 2015 / Free Admission
Open daily from 11am - 7pm / Closed on Sunday, Monday and National holidays
Organised by Arts Initiative Tokyo (AIT)
Co-organized by The Backers Foundation
Supported by YAMAMOTO GENDAI, YOKUMOKU and EASTWEST Inc.
Opening Reception to be held from 6pm - 8pm on Saturday, July 11


[ Artist Information ]

Rattana VANDY(Born in 1980 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia) Rattana Vandy
Still from "MONOLOGUE", 2015, Single channel HD video, color, sound

Vandy lives and works between Phnom Penh, Paris and Taipei. In 2007, he was one of the co-founders of Stiev Selapak / Art Rebels, and in 2009 he was also one of the co-founders of Sa Sa Art Gallery. He contributed, in 2011, to establish SA SA BASSAC, the first dedicated exhibition spaces for contemporary art in Cambodia. Vandy Rattana began his photography practice in 2005 concerned with the lack of physical documentation accounting for the stories, traits, and monuments unique to his culture. His serial work employed a range of analog cameras and formats, straddling the line between strict photojournalism and artistic practice. His recent works mark a shift in philosophy surrounding the relationship between historiography and image making. For Vandy, photographs are now fictional constructions, abstract and poetic surfaces, histories of their own. He lately began interested in film-making. The short-film "MONOLOGUE" is his latest work. In 2014, he co-founded Ponleu Association, which aims to provide access to international reference books, through their translation and publication in Khmer. It also publishes its own books, focusing on various fields of knowledge (philosophy, literature, science, etc.)
www.vandyrattana.com


Kanitha Tith (Born in 1987 in Phnom Pehn, Cambodia)
Kanitha Tith

Tith lives and works in Phnom Penh, she works revolves around the production of sculptures and installations that investigate the possible relationships between the artist's personal experience and memories and her environment, namely the fast-changing landscape of Cambodia. Her sculptural work made of woven metal strings are informed by her childhood memories and combine her interest in the relationship between human and non-human form with spatial strategies that straddle Tith's domestic sphere with the public arena. The material used by the artist - metal strings, found traditional cooking stoves or collected objects belonging to her neighbours - pertains to the realm of daily Cambodian material culture. By so doing, Tith questions the status of the artist and its potential to engage with issues of community, gender and women's identity. The artefacts created by Tith thus act as documents of the effects of the economic and social development in Cambodia on the private and urban spheres, on the individual and her environment, and formulate a visual poetics that evoke the possibility of change. Tith collaborates on film (with French-Cambodian filmmaker Chou Davy) and music (with the American Cambodian band Dengue Fever) projects and is active as a costume designer.






About Backers Foundation
The Backers Foundation is a private group of patrons from the business world who first joined together in 1994 to provide support for the Japan Animal Welfare Society. Since then, the 60 members have funded a variety of organisations. They also participate in self-organised committees set up for projects to which they volunteer their personal time under the motto of enjoying the good things. One of these efforts is a terakoya, or after-hours school for children, that the foundation has operated since 2005. Through the BAR (Backers and AIT Residence Programme) series, 14 artists, six curators and 1 editor have been invited from countries including the USA, the Netherlands, Afghanistan, Brazil, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Argentina, India, Kenya, Morocco and Indonesia.



Further Information
Press Enquiries
Ms. Suzuki at YAMAMOTO GENDAI
Tel: 03-6383-0626 / i@yamamotogendai.org

Backers Foundation/Artist-in-Residence Enquiries
Rika Yoda at Arts Initiative Tokyo
Tel: 03-5489-7277 / otoiawase@a-i-t.net

2015-6-19

ART SCOPE 2012-2014 - Remains of Their Journeys

>>> Japanese


Exhibition "Art Scope 2012-2014 - Remains of Their Journeys"
July 12 (Saturday) - October 13 (Monday, national holiday), 2014
Venue: Hara Museum of Contemporary Art(Shinagawa, Tokyo)



ArtScope2014

ART SCOPE 2012-2014



AIT is pleased to cooperate upon hosting an exhibition at the Hara Museum of Contemporary Art (Tokyo) from July 12 (Saturday) - October 13 (Monday, national holiday), 2014. For details of the show, please refer to the Press Release text below.

===================================================

Art Scope, a mécénat activity of Daimler Foundation Japan, provides contemporary artists from Japan and Germany the chance to experience life within a different culture. The Hara Museum has been a partner in the Art Scope program since 2003, hosting an exhibition to showcase the results of that artistic exchange. For this exhibition, we feature the German artists Rita Hensen and Benedikt Partenheimer (Japan, 2012) and the Japanese artists Ryosuke Imamura and Satoshi Ohno (Germany, 2013). Each artist will present new works created since the completion of their residencies.

It's safe to say that since ancient times, humans have been creatures that travel. The tradition of religious pilgrimages was already an old one in eras when travel was beset with hardships. Over time as the means of transport progressed, travel took on various forms. For example, during the 18th century, for the English upper classes, the "Grand Tour" became the finishing touch in the education of their children. In modern Japan, the overseas "school excursion" is a standard part of the school curriculum. And now in the 21st century, travel - both business and vacation -has become a vital factor in the economic activity of every country.

Climate, landscape, language, ethnicity, culture and society -these are aspects that make travel the precious and significant experience that it is. How then do the sights and feelings experienced as part of the Art Scope program stimulate the work of these artists upon returning home? Of the paintings, photographs, installations and other artwork that appear in this exhibition, those "remains of their travel" may be directly reflected in some, but harder to discern in others. The results may be described as four approaches by four individuals to crystallize the experience of travel not in the form of an impression or a travel report, but in the form of artwork. In so doing, they reaffirm the delightful diversity of contemporary art and invite us to rethink what it means as humans to "travel."

Please note that following the end of this exhibition, it will travel to the Daimler Contemporary in Berlin, Germany in 2015.

【Exhibition Details】
Exhibition title: Art Scope 2012-2014 - Remains of Their Journeys
Dates: July 12 (Saturday) - October 13 (Monday, national holiday), 2014
Place: Hara Museum of Contemporary Art, 4-7-25 Kitashinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 140-0001
Organized by: Hara Museum of Contemporary Art and Daimler Foundation Japan
Under the auspices of: Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Japan
Supported by: Mercedes-Benz Japan Co., Ltd., Mercedes-Benz Finance Co., Ltd. and Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation
Cooperation provided by: Arts Initiative Tokyo [AIT]
Participating artists: Ryosuke Imamura, Satoshi Ohno, Rita Hensen, Benedikt Partenheimer
Hours: 11:00 am-5:00 pm, Wednesday until 8:00 pm (last entry 30 minutes before closing)
Closed: Mondays (except July 21, September 15 and October 13), July 22 and September 16
Admission: General 1,100 yen; Students 700 yen (high school and university) or 500 yen (elementary and junior high); Free for Hara Museum members, students through high school every Saturday during the school term; 100 yen discount per person for groups of 20 or more

【Related Event】
Artist Talk   July 12 (Saturday), 2014, 2:30 - 4:30 pm
Place: The Hall at the Hara Museum of Contemporary Art
Speakers (scheduled): Ryosuke Imamura, Satoshi Ohno, Rita Hensen, Benedikt Partenheimer, Atsuo Yasuda (Hara Museum of Contemporary Art)
Fee: Regular 2,000 yen (includes museum admission), Museum members and up to 2 guests 1,000 yen
Reservations are required (requests accepted from June 24).
For reservations, contact: Tel: 03-3445-0669 or E-mail: event@haramuseum.or.jp
Information about other events will be posted on the Hara Museum website as they are decided.


【Participating Artists】

Ryosuke IMAMURA

Photo: SHINJI MINEGISHI

Ryosuke IMAMURA

Born in 1982 in Kyoto, Japan. Lives in Kyoto. MFA Kyoto City University School of Fine Arts. Exhibited at such venues as the Yokohama Trienniale (2011, Yokohama,Japan) the Tatsuno Art Project (2012/13, Hyogo) and "Rokko Meets Art (2012/13, Hyogo). He creates small, delicate installations that incorporate subtle phenomena mainly of light and sound, inspiried by everyday life or memories. Visitors experience "space" in the form of art, and the "time" that flows in that space through light and sound. For this exhibition, he will show new installations.

Ryosuke IMAMURA

Left:A Wind and a Calm (carbonated water, a clock and the outside), 2013 Color and silent video, 5'18" ©Ryosuke Imamura
Right: February Lesson #05 (reference image), 2014 Mixed media ©Ryosuke Imamura




Satoshi OHNO

Born in 1980 in Gifu Prefecture. Lives in Yamanashi prefecture. MFA Tokyo Zokei University, Tokyo, Japan. Has exhibited at such venues as the Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennial (2009, Niigata) and REAL JAPANESQUE: The Unique World of Japanese Contemporary Art (2012, National Museum of Art, Osaka, Osaka, Japan). Ohno explores the possibilities of painting within a 21st century digital era based on his reading of Eastern and Western art history. His art is characterized by symbolic and energetic images in which conflict or fusion occurs between the natural and the artificial, the organic and the inorganic. He will present new paintings for the exhibition.

Satoshi OHNO

Photo: SHINJI MINEGISHI

Satoshi OHNO

Left:Misty Kilimanjaro, 2014 Oil paint, spray acrylic paint on canvas mounted on panel 210 x 280 cm  ©Satoshi Ohno
Right:Tropical Straw (reference image), 2013 Oil paint, spray acrylic paint on canvas mounted on panel 162.5 x 130.5 cm  ©Satoshi Ohno




Rita HENSEN

Photo: JIRO KAMATA

Rita HENSEN

Born in 1960 in Bedburg, nearby Cologne, Germany. Lives and works in Munich. Studied at the Academy of Visual Arts in Munich. Has exhibited in many solo and group shows in Germany and abroad. She creates work in various media such as drawing, sculpture, photographs and in a variety of materials such as paper. She will present photographs taken at various places in Japan during her residency, sometimes in juxtaposition with those taken in Germany, as well as objects and drawings made on themes drawn from landscapes and things encountered in Japan.

Rita HENSEN

Left: Plan for Installation of "The Brink of the Ceiling" at the Hara Museum, 2014 Collage (Japanese tissue paper on photograph) 20 x 30 cm ©Rita Hensen
Right: Tokyo-Box, 2014 5 booklets of photographs and texts in a box Box: 25 x 37 x 2.5 cm, Booklets: Each 23.5 x 17.5 cm (different number of pages) ©Rita Hensen




Benedikt PARTENHEIMER

Born in 1977 in Munich, Germany. Lives in Berlin. Studied at the LMU University in Munich, the RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia and the Parsons School for Design in New York. During a short time in New York he assisted Richard Avedon. Since 2003, his work has been presented in numerous international solo and group exhibitions. His photography is both straight and conceptual, exemplified in such works as his Turnaround series (2006) of unique portraits taken with a zoom lens of people from behind. His work in this exhibition will include new work in this series, as well as photos and videos taken in Japan as quiet observations of Japanese society.

BenediktPARTENHEIMER

Photo: SHINJI MINEGISHI

BenediktPARTENHEIMER

Left: Vending Machine 04, Japan 2012, 2012 Color photograph 120 x 143 cm ©Benedikt Partenheimer
Right: Turnaround / Hiroshi Sugimoto, Tokyo 2012, 2012 Color photograph 120 x 143 cm ©Benedikt Partenheimer


2014-7- 9

THE BAR Vol.7 Exhibition "New works by Albert Samreth (USA) and Gor Soudan (Kenya)"

>>> Japanese

The Backers Foundation and AIT residence programme vol. 7
"NEW WORKS BY ALBERT SAMRETH (USA) AND GOR SOUDAN (Kenya)"

Saturday, July 12 - Saturday, July 26 at YAMAMOTO GENDAI (Shirokane-Takanawa, Tokyo)
Opening Reception: 6pm - 8pm on Saturday, July 12


The BAR vol.7
Left: "Continuity Drift" (2013). Natural pigment dyes /reference image.  Right: Gor Soudan, Drawing in space (2014). Protest wire / reference image.

Press release Download(PDF / 889KB)


Exhibition flier Download(PDF / 5.4MB)


Artists interview Download(PDF / 2.3MB)
Interview by Ben Davis and Naoko Horiuchi



The exhibition will mark the 7th time that The Backers Foundation and AIT have partnered together, having previously hosted artists and curators from Africa, Asia, South America and the Middle East. As part of the joint residency programme, the exhibition will be accompanied by research, production and cultural exchange through educational sessions.

Albert Samreth (Born in 1987, Los Angeles, USA) is an emerging conceptual artist who has developed a studio practice based around engaging with natural and systematic processes. For this exhibition, Samreth will present a new series of paintings created by either the effects of Tokyo's heavy summer rainfall or made by the sunlight in a natural photographic process. The remainder of his work for the show will be derived from graphic scores related to his concurrent project for the International Moscow Biennale of Young Art, where he will be teaching songs to an African Grey Parrot.

Gor Soudan (Born in 1983, Kisumu, Kenya) is a self-taught conceptual artist based in Nairobi, Kenya. For this exhibition, Soudan will present pieces from his "Drawing in Space" series alongside linear drawings and an installation constructed in his Tokyo studio using a variety of locally-sourced, natural materials.


[ OUTLINE ]
Title: The BAR (The Backers Foundation and AIT Residence Programme) Vol. 7
"New works from Albert Samreth (USA) and Gor Soudan (Kenya)"

Date: Saturday, July 12 - Saturday July 26, 2014
Time: 11:00 - 19:00 *Admission free (Closed on Sunday, Monday and National holiday)
Venue: YAMAMOTO GENDAI(3F, 3-1-15, Shirokane, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Organized by: Arts Initiative Tokyo [AIT]
Co-organized by: The Backers Foundation
Supported by: YAMAMOTO GENDAI / YOKUMOKU
Opening Reception: 6pm - 8pm on Saturday, July 12
Curated by:Naoko Horiuchi(AIT)
Related Event: Please check the AIT website for further information.

*The Associate Editor of Frieze Art Magazine, Christy Lange, joins the artists as a curator-in-residence.





<Artist Biography>

Albert Samreth (Born in 1987 in Los Angeles, USA)

Albert Samreth

Albert Samreth is an emerging conceptual artist who has developed a studio practice based around engaging with natural and systematic processes, and was recently featured in the Singapore Biennale 2013. His recent works include "Pacific Ocean Water Colors," a series of paintings created using the currents of the Pacific Ocean, and "The Voice," a five-channel audio installation commissioned for the Singapore Biennale 2013, where his poetry was narrated by Carolyn Hopkins, a voice actress whose announcements are used for the entire New York City subway system and most airports worldwide. For this exhibition, Samreth will present a new series of paintings created by either the effects of Tokyo's heavy summer rainfall or made by the sunlight in a natural photographic process. The remainder of his work for the show will be derived from graphic scores related to his concurrent project for the International Moscow Biennale of Young Art, where he will be teaching songs to an African Grey Parrot.

http://albertsamreth.com/

Read more...



Gor Soudan (Born in 1983 in Kisumu, Kenya)

Gor

Gor Soudan is a self-taught conceptual artist based in Nairobi, Kenya. With a background in sociology and philosophy, Soudan approaches issues relating to the rapid socio-political changes that Africa, and Kenya in particular, is currently undergoing. His ongoing series "Drawing in Space" comprises works made from protest wire - a tangled, black mass of wire salvaged from car tyres burnt during the civil unrest that accompanied the last elections in Kenya. Soudan more recently produced sculptural works from old bicycle brake cables that he gathered during his time in Freetown, Sierra Leone. For this exhibition, Soudan will present pieces from his "Drawing in Space" series alongside linear drawings and an installation constructed in his Tokyo studio using a variety of locally-sourced, natural materials.

www.gorsoudan.daportfolio.com

Read more...



What is The Backers Foundation?
Since 2007, the Backers Foundation, a private group of patrons from the business worlds, has supported ten emerging contemporary artists and five curators to visit Tokyo and stay for a three month residency. The non-profit organization AIT works with the Backers Foundation to organize and host the program. In 2012, a group exhibition bringing the ten previous residency artists was held at the Hara Museum of Contemporary Art.

Further Information
Press Enquiries
Ms. Sakai at YAMAMOTO GENDAI
Tel: 03-6383-0626 / i@yamamotogendai.org

Backers Foundation/Artist-in-Residence Enquiries
Naoko Horiuchi, Rika Yoda at Arts Initiative Tokyo
Tel: 03-5489-7277 / otoiawase@a-i-t.net

2014-6-20

The BAR vol.6 Exhibition "Divided Against Ourselves"

>>> Japanese

The Backers Foundation and AIT residence programme vol. 6
New works from Allegra Pacheco and Alberto Rodríguez Collía

Saturday, July 13 - Saturday, July 27, 2013 at YAMAMOTO GENDAI (Shirokane, Tokyo)


AllegraPacheco AlbertoRodriguezcollia
Left: Allegra Pacheco / Untitled / 2013  Right: Alberto Rodríguez Collía / No lugar (Non place) / 2013



Press release (Japanese) Download(PDF / 893KB)


Artist interview : Download(PDF / 5.3MB)
Interviewed by Naoko Horiuchi(AIT)、Ben Davis



The Backers Foundation and Arts Initiative Tokyo are delighted to announce the 6th Backers and AIT Residence (BAR) programme exhibition, "Divided Against Ourselves " which will be held between July 13th and 27th at YAMAMOTO GENDAI. This year, emerging artists Allegra Pacheco (b.1986) and Alberto Rodríguez Collía (b.1985) will present works inspired by the experiences and discoveries of their three month residency in Tokyo, funded by the Backers Foundation.

Allegra Pacheco is a Costa Rican artist who works in a variety of mediums, with her work predominantly photographic, but often expanding into drawing and installation. In 2012, Pacheco exhibited her first installation work, 'Boobs', a series of breast-shaped soft sculptures made in collaboration with disenfranchised women from La Carpio, an immigrant neighborhood in Costa Rica. The exhibition space took on the innocence of a children's playground, but at the same time served as a platform whereby feminist issues and taboo subjects such as sexuality could be addressed in an un-biased environment. For this exhibition, Pacheco will produce an installation using both photography and illustration, and inspired by the architecture and density of Tokyo, where systems and rules unconsciously control the city's occupants and their lives. Her fantastical cityscapes are claustrophobic and lonely, where the post-apocalyptic undertones of a machine-ruled world invite the viewer to contemplate where our growth-focused lifestyles might lead our future generations.

In Japan for the first time, Guatemalan artist Alberto Rodríguez Collía uses archive's images (newspapers, television commercials, documentaries, video clips and the internet) to produce video works, drawings and collages. Collía presents images borrowed from mass media to criticize the unstable social and political situation in his country. For the 2008 project 'La Favorita', Collía gathered together with Erick Menchú, Guatemalan visual artist, images of folk sign designs from Guatemala, sharing the anonymous voices of the country. During his stay in Tokyo, he will produce engravings that combine semi-autobiographical situations from Guatemala and Tokyo, weaving together new stories.

The artists share certain similarities in that they use familiar motifs, presented at times in humorous ways, to portray the hidden and darker elements of our society. In recent years, as collectors increase, and the market expands, there is increasing interest in the South American art scene, but at the same time there is much to be learnt about creative expression and the socio-cultural situation.

Residency programs allow us to look through the artist's eyes, seeing not only the pleasant, but also the cultural differences and misunderstandings, in turn allowing us to view our society in a different manner.

Text: Naoko Horiuchi (AIT) Translation: Ben Davis

[ OUTLINE ]
Title: The BAR(The Backers Foundation and AIT residence programme)vol. 6
"Divided Against Ourselves"
New works from Allegra Pacheco and Alberto Rodríguez Collía


Date: Saturday, July 13 - Saturday, July 27, 2013
Venue: YAMAMOTO GENDAI(3F, 3-1-15, Shirokane, Minato-ku, Tokyo)TEL:03-6383-0626
Organized by: Arts Initiative Tokyo [AIT]
Co-organized by: The Backers Foundation
Supported by: YAMAMOTO GENDAI / YOKUMOKU
Time: 11:00 - 19:00 (Closed on Sunday, Monday and National holiday) *Admission free
Opening Reception: Saturday, July 13 18:00 - 20:00

*Related Event: Talk by the two artists and Jimmy Ogonga (Residence Curator from Nairobi) at AIT.
Please check the AIT website for further information.

*YAMAMOTOGENDAI website: www.yamamotogendai.org/
*AIT Artists in residence Official Instagram : (@AIT_AIR)
Curator: Naoko Horiuchi (AIT)






<Biography (Selected)>

Allegra Pacheco(Born in 1986, Costa Rica, Lives and works in London)

AllegraPacheco ・2011 BFA Photography, School of Visual Arts (New York)
・2013 *Currently obtaining a Masters in Fine Arts, Wimbledon College of Arts (London)
・2010 White Box/SCOPE Art fair (Miami)
・2010 New York Photo Festival, DUMBO BK (New York)
・2011 Tokyoscapes, Just Another Space (Tokyo)
・2012 BOOBS Galeria Des.Pacio (SJ Costa Rica)
・2013 Boobs in Japan, GALLERY MoMo (Tokyo) July 20 - Aug 10


Read more...

allegrapacheco_tokyo allegrapacheco_boobs
Left: Untitled, Mori Art Museum ( From the series of "Tokyo") / 2011  Right: Boobs / 2012 / mixed media (detail)

AllegraPacheco_untitles
Untitled / 2013 / acrylic, ink on board




Alberto Rodríguez Collía(Born in 1985, Lives and works in Guatemala)

AlbertoRodriguezcollia ・Graduated in 2007 as engraver from Escuela de Arte 10 from Madrid
・2007 in august he co-founds the Taller Experimental de Gráfica, the 1st. workshop dedicated for engraving in Guatemala.
・2008 "Auction 08", Museum of Latin American Arts (California)
・2008 "Horror Vacui", Espacio CE! (Guatemala)
・2010 "Central American Biennial" (Nicaragua)
・2012 "Estampida", Des.Pacio gallery (San Jose, Costa Rica)


Read more...

Alberto Rodríguez Collía
From the series of "Weekend" / 2009 / scanned newspapers, frame

Alberto Rodríguez Collía Alberto Rodríguez Collía
Left: Vegetation / 2013 / super 8 film transferred to digital video / 3' 07" Right: No lugar (Non place) / 2013 / engraving on paper

Alberto Rodríguez Collía Alberto Rodríguez Collía
From the series of "Weekend" / 2009 / scanned newspapers, frame




What is The Backers Foundation?
Since 2007, the Backers Foundation, a private group of patrons from the business worlds, has supported ten emerging contemporary artists and five curators to visit Tokyo and stay for a three month residency. The non-profit organization AIT works with the Backers Foundation to organize and host the program. In 2012, a group exhibition bringing the ten previous residency artists was held at the Hara Museum of Contemporary Art.

2013-7- 2

The BAR vol.5 Exhibition "Rounds"

The BAR vol.5 Exhibition "Rounds"
New works from Syagini Ratna Wulan and Duto Hardono


duto duto

Syagini Ratna Wulan / "L.S." / 2010 / detail        Duto Hardono / "Micro/Macro" / 2008

 

 

May 28(sat) - June 11 (sat), 2011 Sunday and Monday Closed *Admission free
hiromiyoshii roppongi 5-9-20, Roppongi Minato-ku, Tokyo TEL: 03-5772-5233
Time: 13:00 - 19:00
Organized by: Arts Initiative Tokyo[AIT]
Co-organized by: The Backers Foundation
Supported by: hiromiyoshii roppongi, YOKUMOKU
Opening Reception: May 28(sat) 18:00 - 20:00 *19:00~ performance by the artists

 

 

 The Backers Foundation and Arts Initiative Tokyo are delighted to announce the 5th Backers and AIT Residence(BAR) programme exhibition, "The BAR vol. 5: Rounds" which will be held between May 28th and June 11th at hiromiyoshii roppongi. New works by two emerging Indonesian artists selected this year; Syagini Ratna Wulan(b.1979) and Duto Hardono(b.1985) will be shown. This 3 months artist in resident programme in Tokyo, is funded by the Backers foundation.

 The Tohoku-Kanto Earthquake in March held back many foreign artists from visiting Japan. News around the world continue to broadcast the countless aftershocks and the ongoing nuclear power plant issue, and yet, the two began their Tokyo residency since early April. Their determination to do so under such unpredictable conditions, is undoubtedly related to their bitter experience of the Sumatra earthquake. What we can also see here is their unfathomable motivation to "create" as artists.

 Syagini Ratna Wulan uses furniture and everyday utensils to create art in a variety of different media including painting and installation. In her 2010 one-person exhibition 'Love Affair pt. 1: Dining Room/ White Lies', she created a series of tables and chairs made from dripping white paints and ceramics and showed these together with a portraits of human skull. Like our bones which are normally hidden from view by our flesh, the exhibition explored the normally hidden, other sides of romantic love such as deceit and perversion. For this exhibition Ratna Wulan has made new works looking into issues of dream and reality, using old furniture, cushions and typewriters that she found during her residency in Tokyo. Her work will be shown as a series of photographs, drawings and installation. Ratna Wulan has referred to the French thinker Voltaire in explaining her works, quoting him thus: "History is nothing but a pack of tricks that we play upon the dead". By inserting the trickery of art into old, used historical objects, Ratna Wulan intends to reconfigure these things again as an artist-trickster.

 Duto Hardono works mainly in sound, performance, drawing and collage. His works specifically utilize the subtle and sometimes distressing tensions which emerge from using found or readymade objects such as old cassette tapes, records, and instruments. In his work 'How To Perform John Cage's 4'33″ On A Tape Loop Delay As Demonstrated By A Band Of Cacti,' Hardono referred to the seminal sound work by John Cage '4'33″' (1952) in order to create a surreal installation comprising three cactus plants which mutely 'played' Cage's score to viewers via a home-made delay mechanical system using a pair of looping cassette tape. According to Hardono, the 'ridiculous concept' of the work is about "delaying silence." For this exhibition Hardono has used cassette tapes to transmit his recordings of the city of Tokyo randomly, also showing various collage works made up from items he picked up during the residency. Hardono will perform at the opening using a vintage synthesizer, which he recently found in Tokyo.

 Ratna Wulan and Hardono have spent the past two months in Tokyo, coming across unfamiliar objects and situations, giving them new meanings and possibilities by dissolving their histories and adding new dimensions to them, going round and round. The Indonesian art scene is today a vibrant and well known one, deeply connected to the uniquely hybrid geographical, historical, religious and philosophical of the country. We can say that Ratna Wulan and Hardono are representative of a younger generation of Indonesian artists who are just as comfortable working within their local contexts as within broader global ones.


Text by : Naoko Horiuchi [AIT]
Translated by: Roger McDonald [AIT], Kaori Iwasaki [AIT]


 


< Artists >
 ・Syagini Ratnawulan (Born in Bandung, 1979, lives and works in Bandung, Indonesia)
 ・Duto Hardono (Born in Jakarta, 1985, lives and works in Bandung, Indonesia)

* Backers Foundation and AIT: Curator In Residence Agung Hujatnika(Curator, Selasar Sunaryo Art Space, Indonesia) will stay in Tokyo for 3 weeks from June 3rd.

 


 

Since 2007, the Backers Foundation, a private group of patrons from the business worlds, has supported eight emerging contemporary artists and four curators to visit Tokyo and stay for a 3 month residency. In 2012, a group exhibition of the 10 previous residency artists will be held. The non-profit organization AIT works with the Backers Foundation to organize and host the program.

2011-5-17

Yoshinari Nishio: Overall in Nairobi Project

nishio at ait room.JPG

 

Yoshinari Nishio, former MAD Artist course student, held a document exhibition in AIT Room for one week in February 2010. Titled Overall Project in Nairobi, it presented video, photographs and textiles from his recent Overall series of works made in Nairobi.

Nishio has recently participated in many art projects in Japan and abroad, including the Echigo Tsumari Art Triennale 2009.

 

The artist made a talk at the opening.

2010-2-26

Bianca Maria Barmen New Works exhibition

Swedish Sculptor Bianca Maria Barmen
New Works made in Japan, “Yama-Tora-Mori”

AIT is pleased to host a reception for new works created by the current artist
in residence, Bianca Maria Barmen, supported by IASPIS, Sweden.
 
An image or disturbing news come across in a newspaper or on TV may be the starting
point for her works. At first glance, her small installation-like works with children
 or animals such as a rabbit, monkey or dog may appear to represent the presence of
the inferior. Yet what lies beneath is her homage to immense sculptures from the Olmec
civilization of ancient Mexico, or the great world heritage temple, Angkor Wat of Cambodia.

Over nearly 3 months in Tokyo, Bianca Maria Barmen has created a set of small bronze sculptures
and a drawing. The artist will be present at the reception.
For more details, please visit AIT`s website.

Biography】 
Bianca Maria Barmen (b. 1960) lives and works in Lund, Sweden and in Cambodia.
Her works were presented at the Frieze Art Fair in London in 2007 and have been collected by many
institutions including the Moderna Museet, Stockholm.

Outline
Title: AIT ARTIST IN RESIDENCE PROGRAM, Swedish Sculptor Bianca Maria Barmen
New Works Reception
Date and Time: Monday, November 30 2009, 19:00 - 21:00 *Brief introduction of new work by artist at 20:00
Organized by : Arts Initiative Tokyo [AIT]
Venue: AIT Room Daikanyama

2009-11-30