Utopia # 003, 2008
Up: 103 x 165 cm
Down: 100 x 165 cm
Following Ai Weiwei's inaugural installation Cube Light Misa Shin will be showing a selection of works by a Korean photographer Back Seung Woo. The exhibition entitled Blow Up will feature some haunting images shot in North Korea. It is scheduled to run though April 16. For more information visit the gallery website.
Beatriz Inglessis is a Tokyo-based printmaker currently in the art Ph.D. program at Geidai (Tokyo University of the Arts). "The Way of the Fool" is a video of an installation she did for her MFA (also at Geidai). You can see more of Beatriz' work on her webpage.
If you still have time to make it to Kyoto (or you are there already), here is a poster for the new show opening tonight at Kodama Gallery Kyoto.
Tokyo gallery scene is about to grow by about 15.5 cubic meters. The new permanent exhibition space called "The Container" (is literally the size of a standard shipping container) will hold two-and-a-half months long shows of the artists selected by the curator Shai Ohayon. The opening reception will be held on March 7th from 7 to 9 pm, and will feature the inaugural exhibition by Tokyo's own Jack McLean.
The location of the new gallery is inside the Bross hair salon in Daikanyama. You can find the address of the venue here.
Maiko Haruki, neither portrait nor landscape 2, 2010
The exhibition will be held at 1223 GENDAIKAIGA, Tokyo 26 February – 8 May.
Opening Reception: Friday, 25 February 6-8PM.
Rear Window, Erik van der Weijde, First edition , 2010, 20 pages, 15x21 cm
AIT ARTIST TALK #51: "Publishing as an Art Practice"
by Dutch Artist, Erik Van Der Weijde
2/23(Wed）19:00-21:00
Contact: Send an email with its subject as "AIT ARTIST TALK #51" to office@a-i-t.net,
including your name, membership type, and contact.
“Un Coup de dés jamais n'abolira le hasard”, 2009
1 of 22 perforated book pages, framed
each 32.5 x 24.7 cm
This Friday, February 26th from six to eight Taka Ishii Gallery will be holding an opening reception for their new exhibition of Cerith Wyn Evans' work. Starting at 7:30 there will be a live performance by Keiji Haino, do not miss it!! Click here for more information.
Motus Fort gallery says:
Please join Satomi Shirai for a gallery discussion at Motus Fort on Thursday, February 24, starting at 6:00pm. Hope to see you all there.
２月２４日（木）、１８時よりMotus Fortにてギャラリー・ディスカッションを開きます。皆様のご参加を楽しみにしております。Let's enjoy discussion and drink.
Rie Wakiyachi, Here and There 116.7×116.7cm (S50) パネルにミクスドメディア 2011. Image courtesy of the gallery.
Located in the outskirts of Nagoya is Gallery IDF, one of the leading figures in the Nagoya contemporary art scene. Their current “New! Artists Preview” features four artists with sparkling talent, two of which have been part of ULTRA 003 last year. A variety of works line their walls: The man-faced crows by Rie Wakiyachi done simply with strong, flat colors exudes a silence that at once draws in and repels the viewer. Contrastingly, colorful scenes from the circus by Kashiwabara depict light-hearted playfulness. Stain-like silhouettes of girls in blue and green peek out from Aiko Konomi’s canvases while Ooishi provide two-toned abstractions. These earmarked artists we will probably see more of in Tokyo too.
by Chisako Izuhara
Yui Suzuki, installation view. Image courtesy of Chisako Izuhara
Yebisu Art Labo is faithful to its name: it is a laboratory space for artistic experimentation. The exhibit “Iruikonin-dan” ("The Story of Different Kind of Marriage") by Yui Suzuki is less for the public than for the artist, serving as a break for the evolving artist as she moves from paint into clay. The works, many of which are unfinished, portray an imaginary world of inter-specie chimeras using swirling, clashing pigments. There are several clay works too accompanying the magical scenery on canvas.
by Chisako Izuhara
| Rear Window, Erik van der Weijde, First edition , 2010, 20 pages, 15x21 cm AIT ARTIST TALK #51: "Publishing as an Art Practice" by Dutch Artist, Erik Van Der Weijde 2/23(Wed）19:00-21:00 Erik van der Weijde is on a three month residency with AIT supported by the |
He is represented by Gallery Chert in Berlin and his books can be viewed
online from links below.
・http://erikvanderweijde.com/
・http://www.4478zine.com/Erik will introduce his book projects within the context of artists books and 'zine' culture.
Examples of his books will be available for browsing at the talk.The talk will be in English with consecutive translation into Japanese by AIT staff.[Biography]
Born in Dordrecht, NL, 1977. Lives and works in Amsterdam, NL and Natal, BR.
Erik van der Weijde works mainly with photography as his tool. He graduated from the
Rietveld Academy in 2003 and completed a two year residency at the Amsterdam
Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten in 2008.
Van der Weijde has published his photographic series with both renowned publishers
such as ROMA Publications, Rollo-Press and Kaugummi Books as through his own
publishing house 4478ZINE. His work has been shown in galleries and institutions
throughout Europe and oversees. Van der Weijde is represented by Chert Gallery, Berlin.
・http://erikvanderweijde.com/
・http://www.4478zine.com/[Outline]
Date and Time: Wed. Feb 23, 2011, 19:00 - 21:00
Organized by: Arts Initiative Tokyo [AIT] / Supported by: FONDS BKVB
Venue: AIT Room Daikanyama http://www.a-i-t.net/en/location.php
Admission: JPY1,000. Students and AIT Base Members JPY800/AIT House Members
and Support Members Free (1 free drink)
*Talk will be in English with consecutive Japanese translation
Contact: Send an email with its subject as "AIT ARTIST TALK #51" to office@a-i-t.net,
including your name, membership type, and contact.
This two-day art fair starts at 3pm and will run until midnight. The opening party is at 9:00 pm tonight. Local exhibitors include nca/nichido contemporary art, Galerie Sho Contemporary Art, Gallery Terra Tokyo, Gallery Tagboat, YUKA CONTEMPORARY and Wada Fine Arts. Please visit the venue site for more information.
Installation view "Blades House" Gasworks, London. Image courtesy of the gallery.
Reception for the artist from 6 to 8. Exhibition will be on through March 19th. Click here for gallery site.
Nobuyoshi Araki, “Theater of Love”c.1965, B & W Print, print size: 12.1 x 16.4 cm. Image courtesy of Taka Ishii Gallery
Attention Tokyo art lovers: hiromiyoshii, Ota Fine Art, Taka Ishii, Wako Works of Art, and Zen Foto are opening new branches (Taka Ishii, hiromiyoshii, Wako Works of Art) or moving (Ota Fine Art, Zen Foto) to the Pyramid Building in Roppongi. A joint opening party will be held Friday February 18th 19:00–22:00.
During the G-TOKYO extravaganza at the Mori Museum the younger galleries that form the NEW TOKYO CONTEMPORARIES consortium will be holding their own day-long event. Scheduled for February 19th, the event is comprised of a day long exhibition of the artists represented by the seven galleries (Ken Sasaki (AOYAMA l MEGURO), Tatzu Nishi (ARATANIURANO), Masayoshi Hanawa (ZENSHI), Dale Berning (Take Ninagawa), Kaoru Arima (MISAKO & ROSEN), Chim ↑ Pom (Mujin-to Production), Yuki Mashimo (Yuka Sasahara Gallery)), talk sessions and a party. The talks (only in Japanese) are: "Art and Society" and "Collection of Collection."
The party will feature Soju Tao (Okame pro), Megane x HIKO (alternative pole dancer) and okamotonoriaki (VJ + Live performance).
Event venue: Roppongi Hills Cafe 11:00 - 22:00. Entrance free (with purchase of one drink)
For more information please consult NTC website here.
Alfredo Jaar Solo Exhibition, Kenji Taki Gallery
The most anticipated Tokyo art fair of the year is just around the corner. G-TOKYO 2011, no in its second year, will again be held at the Mori Arts Center Gallery where leading commercial galleries in town will compete for attention. This year the event will incorporate the two-day art fair (February 19th and 20th), followed by exhibition week (February 21–27). This year's exhibitors are: ARATANIURANO, Gallery Koyanagi, Gallery Side 2, hiromiyoshii, KENJI TAKI GALLERY, Kodama Gallery, Tomio Koyama Gallery, Mizuma Art Gallery, Ota Fine Arts, Scai the Bathhouse, ShugoArts, Taka Ishii Gallery, TARONASU, WAKO WORKS OF ART and Yamanoto Gendai.
For mor information please visit the event website.
I am reposting an interesting review of the Lee Ufan show at SCAI THE BATHOUSE published by the Tokyo Weekender.
Installation view, image courtesy of the gallery
The Eitoiko gallery/foundation is now holding a group show of the works by Takahiro Nagasawa, Ryuhei Takada (unit.maker) and Yuki Hashimoto. This show will be on through March 19th.
Gallery APA is a unique venue with an ancient well in the center of the room. It specializes in promoting upcoming Aichi artists. Their show until February 13 titled “UN-UNISON” presented works by five graduate art students in their first year. As the title suggested, artists had their own distinct style. Kachikawa’s etched animals drifted pleasantly naked under-water next to voluptuous legs in high-heels by Rika Mizuno. Color burst from Uemura’s canvas while monochrome works by Ono combined flowers and food and grainy aeroplanes by Kadota made reference to the war. We are yet to see how these five will evolve in the years to come.
Post by Chisako Izuhara
Homunculus, 1996, bronze 33 x 53 cm. Image courtesy of the artist.
The Pink Cow in Shibuya is now holding a show by the Tokyo-based artist Michael Graham. You can see more work on the artist website. For the venue click here. The show is on through the end of this month.
If you have not seen the WAKUWAKU SHIBUYA at the Tokyo Wonder Site yet this is your last chance. The TWS is holding their closing event on Sunday, February 13. Click here for more details.
Homunculus, 1996, bronze 33 x 53 cm. Image courtesy of the artist.
The Pink Cow in Shibuya is now holding a show by the Tokyo-based artist Michael Graham. You can see more work on the artist website. For the venue click here. The show is on through the end of this month.
TOKYO FRONTLINE is the new contemporary art and photography art fair, scheduled to open in the 3331 Arts Chiyoda on February 17th and run throughout the weekend. The new fair will consists of three sections.
1. THE FRONTLINE will be showcasing young artists both represented by galleries (Tomoko Atsuchi of TARO NASU, Ken Kagami of Taka Ishii, Yusuke Komuta of SCAI THE BATHHOUSE, Tomoko Nagai of Tomio Koyama) and independent (Teng-Yuan Chang, Soichiro Murata, Hiraku Suzuki, Soshiro Matsubara). This part is curated and will be accompanied by an iPad year book app.
2. THE EXCHANGE is a networking space meant to bring together galleries, publishers, art collectives, art foundations, etc.
3. GYM is a sales section, the actual art fair portion of the event, where galleries that range from the young to the more established houses will present and sell their wares. Most participants are from Tokyo, with a sprinkling of galleries from Kyoto, Osaka. The international contingent is represented by Gallery Jinsun and Gallery Godo from Seoul and AFA Macao (Macao, China).
For more information please go to the event website.
[[posterous-content:pid___0]]TOKYO FRONTLINE is the new contemporary art and photography art fair, scheduled to open in the 3331 Arts Chiyoda on February 17th and run throughout the weekend. The new fair will consists of three sections.
1. THE FRONTLINE will be showcasing young artists both represented by galleries (Tomoko Atsuchi of TARO NASU, Ken Kagami of Taka Ishii, Yusuke Komuta of SCAI THE BATHHOUSE, Tomoko Nagai of Tomio Koyama) and independent (Teng-Yuan Chang, Soichiro Murata, Hiraku Suzuki, Soshiro Matsubara). This part is curated and will be accompanied by an iPad year book app.
2. THE EXCHANGE is a networking space meant to bring together galleries, publishers, art collectives, art foundations, etc.
3. GYM is a sales section, the actual art fair portion of the event, where galleries that range from the young to the more established houses will present and sell their wares. Most participants are from Tokyo, with a sprinkling of galleries from Kyoto, Osaka. The international contingent is represented by Gallery Jinsun and Gallery Godo from Seoul and AFA Macao (Macao, China).
For more information please go to the event website.
LG Williams, Salaryman/Superman, 2011, installation view
Tana's director Tamura Masamichi
Baron Osuna (Super Window Project) with the artist
Baron Osuna and Tamura Masamichi
Still independent curator Shai Ohayon and Beatriz Inglessis
The SHIBUHOUSE gang
Tana's latest show was a cheeky production by a visiting American artist LG Williams who utilized every centimeter of the gallery space. The crowd gathered for the inauguration party could witness the shelf brimming with salaryman's clothes shed as he took off to save the world.
Image courtesy of AES + F
A Russian collective AES + F has finally made it to Tokyo. Their first show is being hosted by the Hong-Kong based Art Statements gallery. The group of four artists (Tatiana Arzamasova, Lev Evzovitch, Evgeny Sviatsky and Vladimir Fridkes) have been in business since 1987, surviving the now-booming, now-dead Russian art market. The current show is centered around their 2009 video installation The Feast of Trimalchio, with a selection of large and small scale digital prints displayed throughout the two floors of the gallery.
On view through March 15th. The gallery's website has been down for sometime now, their physical address is 3-2-12 Ebisuminami, Shibuya-ku.
[[posterous-content:pid___0]]
"sleep on the ground," oil on cotton, 1620 x 1303mm, 2010
One of the latest additions to the Kyosumi-Shirakawa art complex Ai Kawada Gallery is showing the new works by a young painter Sachiko Muraoka. The exhibition, entitled "weather report" brings together five paintings where flickers of color paint against dark, velvety background (she uses cotton as support), are meant to reproduce memories and sensations. The show will be open through February 26th.
"the tower of books," 2010, Animation loop
lightedge: face II is the second solo show of the artist at ARATANIURANO, one of Tokyo's New Contemporaries. Watanabe mixes time and distance in his animation and digital prints. Most of the works are in monochrome which brings out its virtual character. This show opened January 22 and will be on view through February 26.
Opens February 19th at 
