TAB Event - "Tanagokoro 9" Exhibition

"Tanagokoro 9" Exhibition

This event has ended.
At Radium
Media: Painting, Sculpture, Art Party

There is an antique shop which is well known among antique dealers - Setsu Gatodo. The late Iwao Setsu, who used to be the owner of the shop, wrote a column in Geijutsu Shincho magazine for a long time. The writings were collected and published in a beautiful book entitled "Beauty of Tanagokoro" (1996, out of print), and this book inspired the exhibition title "Tanagokoro" -- literally meaning the palm of one's hand.

Japanese culture has a custom of appreciating artwork made to be held in the hands. This may look odd to people who have different cultural backgrounds, but it is very natural for Japanese people to handle artwork directly using their hands, especially for those who deal with the antique market - which is, in fact, much larger than the contemporary art market in Japan.

One of the reasons for this is cultural origin. Western fine art is rooted in iconic representation, while Japanese fine art finds its root in decorative handcrafted tools. Also, Japanese people have a strong admiration for tiny, palm-sized artworks. Tea equipment for the Japanese tea ceremony and netsuke*(1) are a fine example of tiny artwork. In a wider context, the aesthetic of minimalism embodied by bonsai*(2) and haiku*(3) is unique to Japan, where dexterity is a strong part of traditional craft.

Based on this aesthetic, Roentgenwerke AG held the 1st "Tanagokoro" exhibition on March 1997, featuring 8 artists - Motohiko Odani, Izuru Kasahara, Isao Sato, Taro Shinoda, Yoshihiro Suda, Tetsuya Nakamura and Daisuke Nakayama. This exhibition placed a single restriction on the artwork - size. The goal of the exhibition was to focus on small yet remarkable artworks. "Tanagokoro" has since been held seven times as of now (the last event being in October 2002), at different art fairs and other venues. Top artists such as Shinji Ogawa, Takashi Murakami, Kenji Yanobe and Akira Yamaguchi were some of the exhibitors.

From the end of 2002 to the beginning of 2003, an exhibition entitled "108" was held at the Ise Foundation in New York, based on the concept of "Tanagokoro". At this exhibition, tiny, beautiful artworks in 10.8 x 10.8 cm acrylic cases were displayed just above floor level to emphasize their small size. As a result of a New York Times review, the show became a success, attracting more than 500 people to the closing party.

Again, we unleash the concept of "Tanagokoro" after five years, as a gentle reminder of the power of small items.

*(1) Netsuke are miniature sculptures that were invented in 17th century Japan to store personal belongings such as pipes, tobacco, money, seals or medicines.
*(2) Bonsai is the art of the aesthetic miniaturization of trees by growing them in containers. Cultivation includes techniques for shaping, watering, and repotting in various styles of containers.
*(3) Haiku is a form of Japanese poetry. Each poem consists of 17 Japanese "on" (a phonetic unit), in three metrical phrases of 5, 7 and 5 "on" respectively, and typically containing a seasonal reference.

*(1) , *(2) and *(3) are quotations from Wikipedia.

[Image: Seiji Aruga "1097" (2008) Paper 29×29×25mm]