2022 / Japan Foundation presents “TANAGOKORO: Alternative Crafts by 16 Japanese Contemporary Artists” March 12 – May 28
Forwarded for Japan Foundation Los Angeles
Japan Foundation Los Angeles presents new exhibition
TANAGOKORO: Alternative Crafts by 16 Japanese Contemporary Artists
Date: March 12 – May 28, 2022
Location: The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles
Address: 5700 Wilshire Blvd., #100 Los Angeles, CA 90036
Hours: Monday – Saturday 12 pm – 6 pm / Closed on Sundays, 4/29 & 4/30
Admission: Free
Tanagokoro references matters that virtually fit in the palm of one’s hand. As in Yasunari Kawabata’s book, Palm-of-the-Hand stories, the narratives are concise and portable, yet imbued with characteristic depth.
The skills involved in handling tools highlight the premium placed on manual dexterity in Japanese culture. The centuries long investment in craft as the primary vehicle for the expression of aesthetic and spiritual values in Japan registers across the board in traditional folk, commercial and classical arts, from silk weaving to street fashion and anime.
Tanagokoro exhibition introduces sixteen Japanese artists trained in traditional craft-making techniques yet committed to engaging contemporary issues and concerns.
Nobuki Mizumoto challenges himself to the fine carving techniques of Ukiyoe masters; Chiaki Saito‘s washi series “Utsusemi” repurposes women’s garments by combining traditional techniques of kamiko (Shinto paper garment) and other ancient nonextant methods; Akihiro Yasugi fuses iconic objects into a new pop art vernacular; Akira Shikiya surveys the wounded legacy of Okinawa through the lens of an Okinawa native transforming U.S. military waste into objects of positive messaging; Buddhist monk/artist, Kazama Tenshing‘s pilgrimage are mantras delivered in the form of performance and object installations; Mai Yasugi‘s Maitakesha publishes miniature books of poetry and short stories created in situ with quotidian materials.
Other works presented in this exhibition by AyakoYokoyama, Sakiko Ooba, RieTakanokura, Masayuki Fukunishi, Naohiko Onodera, Hirotoshi Ito, Caori Fujita, Mokusi Morohasi, Atsushi Adachi, and Minako Kumagai are lacquerware, tin cast, copper etching, fiber work, ceramic, stoneware, paper sculpture, and woodwork all revived not only for the pursuit of precision but also newly interpreted by these emerging and mid-career artists. Please join us for this special exhibition as we reopen the Japan Foundation, Los Angeles’ gallery space.
This exhibition is curated by Kio Griffith and organized by the Japan Foundation, Los Angeles.
