Thursday, April 17, 2014

KAIR 2013: Final Exhibition



It's a tad difficult to condense the final exhibition for the KAIR residency. The work by all 3 artists was stunningly beautiful, thoughtful and evoked an appreciation for art in many mediums. And being privy to the movements and tribulations of the artists and their work only lent more depth to the experience of viewing them in their finished state. 

Of course the week leading up to the opening day was fraught with time issues as well as weather concerns. The Yuri-Za Theater where Nik's work hung had a couple leaky spots so Keiko and Sugimoto-san had to wrangle a plastic sheet over the area to protect it during a few days of intense downpour. (Thanks last typhoon of the season.) Sayaka had multiple machines and lights to configure so she was busy till the last minute. And Susken's installation had to be placed in her absence as a family emergency led to her leaving Japan with haste over a week early. Of course KAIR is very organized and all of these bumps in the road were just mere, well, bumps.

So the day went a little like this... Everyone wanting to partake met in the parking lot of the farmers market and we moved en masse through to the different locations where each artist made a presentation and answered questions. The translator was at hand and the people in attendance were from all over Shikoku.

Sayaka's work was an installation in the old saki factory with a Japanese tatami room set up for a dinner. She dyed fabrics with indigo and kaki shibu to use as walls and made animations and audio with her drawings and the music of a local African clay drum player. She also made a slow motion film of people's reactions to eating ume bashi (very sour plums) in close up. The overall experience was very nuanced and stimulating yet soothing with its warm glow, and at times very surprising. (The dinner on the table was actually projected animations of food onto plates that moved in the blink of an eye.)

Suskens work consisted of 2 projects. She made beautiful wooden "clouds" that hung massively opposite Nik's work in the theater. (They have just now been placed in their proper place on a sloping hill along the main road.) The overlapping created differences in the transparency and despite their size and heft made an ethereal impression. She had also been inspired to enliven a local dilapidated house by using old kimono fabrics to cover big wooden "rock" sculptures and place them throughout the rice field in front. Red, being an important color in Japanese culture and religion, was prevalent and made a dominating contrast  to the structure and was quite arresting to view from the road.

Nik's work, a goliath 4 x 7 m, was a kaleidoscope of imagery that presented itself to him throughout our experience in the area, both insights and impressions, and is thusly named Kagami (mirror). Using his techniques, he created a single medium collage inspired by things ranging from temples to farmers, the mountainous landscape to our neighbor. Local people really rejoiced in the myriad familiar elements. And of course the monumental size presented on the theater's stage was quite impressive.

Since the theater is rarely used, Nik's work was allowed to hang until January so many people were able to visit it throughout the 3 months. As an added bonus, KAIR and Nik decided to make a print edition and is available for sale. I've included image info at the bottom. If interested or have questions, please contact Keiko at info.gvi@gmail.com.

All the work was to be on view for about 10 days where people were free to view at their pleasure and leisure. The artists spent a lot of time there throughout the days with KAIR representatives to answer visitors' questions. It was a great pleasure to interact with people both familiar and unknown and of course come and go by bike in the glorious Autumn sunshine.

The whole exhibition was a resounding success with the most visitors the residency has ever seen. It's no surprise really as the artists all do fantastic work. But it's also clearly a sign that the residency as a whole is a successful vehicle for bringing out the best in the artists they choose to invite. It's truly a testament to the passion and thoughtful nature of all involved at KAIR to create such an enriching environment both for artists and art lovers.


The work is done!

installing...
installing...

<sigh>


Hopper, detail bottom right corner, walking along Kamogawa river in Kyoto

detail, man with umbrella was our old neighbor, he came outside to work everyday

pesky typhoon, but no damage done!


Exhibition Day! outside saki factory, Sayaka giving intro


Sayaka's tatami room, with animations on fabric walls and plates with audio
Sayaka hosted a dinner mid-week

indigo dyed fabric

sour plum film installation

table detail, shrimp, abalone, soy sauce...

Susken's kimono rocks

detail, with persimmons on tree (kaki)

Susken's clouds
Nik giving his presentation, Hopper insisted on being held...



...and fell asleep, with Sayaka's dad

studio with studies and smaller works, some traded and sold
Hopper and daddy, night time visit
 
photographing the work for postcards

during exhibition week, a chance to have more intimate conversations with visitors

Yuri-za Theater, with Keiko

Kagami, edition of 20, signed & numbered, 92x55 cm incl. margin, +/- EUR 280

The River & Refreshment





The Yoshino River runs through and divides Kamiyama into 2 halves as it winds through the mountains, gobbling up streams cascading down from scattered hidden springs,  necessitating numerous bridges. Green river rocks, smoothed into various shapes, tumble and collect in arcing banks broken up by patches of sand and massive boulders. Small darter fish, clinging and wriggling, trout, minnows and water striders... a butterfly here, a dragonfly there...

Many of these spots were easy to get to, even by walking, and provided endless rock skipping/throwing opportunities as well as a chance to cool off. One spot in particular was Mori-san's favorite and was a bit of an adventure to get to, including walking through snake terrain. (Just stomp and talk loudly.) But oh so worth it, to be able to swim in the fresh, crystal clear, spring mountain water.

How lucky were we to enjoy such natural resources and play without so much as a plastic toy or gadget. Well, minus the camera of course. Just snacks and chatting about what's on view, discovering a world of its own that one only has to stop and look to notice.


view from Eri Rufus & Ira's house

not far from our house


Mori-san's favorite swimming spot

creek bank picnic with Eri Rufus & Ira

looking for good skipping stones


Sayaka & Manus

behind the onsen

scary but beautiful bridge behind the trout farm

by the trout farm

nice boulders

this is where Hopper & I would walk to to throw stones and look for fish and stuff, about 2 mins walk

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

A Pox on Our house



Oh ye chickenpox, a right of passage for any child, how I am grateful you are hereby vanquished from our home forever. You weren't too severe, and though you may have left a scar or two, I am happy you arrived when you did as you may have otherwise thwarted our plans to visit loved ones in America.

I am also grateful that you did not break Hopper's spirit. He remained happy and playful, if not a bit flushed and sleepy, but I certainly wish that you would have left his groin alone. And the inside of his ear, really? Why do you pick such awful places to live?

You have a reputation, like a fallen celebrity, causing ripples of pointing and woeful glances. (Because really, how do I keep a toddler indoors for a whole week?) But I dare say it's for all the wrong reasons, for you arrive and infringe yourself on many peoples lives by sheer force and vulgarity. I can see you have been busy in my city, making many appearances, and although you are welcome by a strange degree, we are always happy to see you leave. For good.

I bid you farewell, oh blistery one. It was real.
Doooooiiiieee, daaaaaag, buhbye!

PS. Thanks for the immunity boost you primeval parasite.

This week's activities included:
making rockets, fish and whales with 2 sets of buns

visiting the hissing ducks

kickin it

still happy

picking flowers for mama

acrobatics


visiting daddy's work on the last day of his show Don't Sleep On Your Moon

Beastie Boys stance

trainspotting

he insisted on napping in his stroller all week, with friends of course!