Exhibition/event has ended.
[image: Takahiro Iwasaki "Out Of Disorder (Cosmo World)" 2011, Dimensions variable, Hair and dust, Collection of Yokohama Museum of Art]

Takahiro Iwasaki “Light is made of Stars”

Urano
Finished

Artists

Takahiro Iwasaki
Takahiro Iwasaki transforms our consciousness by visualizing the reality that we overlook on a daily basis, manipulating the distance and scale of objects. He has focused on the issue of electrical power since early on and presented works addressing the subject at Yokohama Triennale in 2011. These included two pieces produced using his own hair, one inspired by the temporary closure of the large waterfront Ferris wheel in Yokohama as a result of planned blackouts immediately following the Great East Japan Earthquake, and another that depicted the fallen no. 27 steel tower on the Yoru no Mori Line, which resulted in the loss of the external power supply at the Fukushima Daiichi Power Plant and caused the core meltdown to occur. At Venice Biennale, Iwasaki is currently showing works that present images of Japan from different perspective points, exploring further problems that surround this subject area, such as nuclear power and resource development, and the chemical plants that caused pollution while supporting the postwar economic growth of Japan.
This exhibition will include the work “Out of order (ocean model),” a series that depicts oil rigs extracting oil from beneath the ocean floor in offshore Japanese territory and the surrounding islands. It is comprised of petroleum-based waste products, including disposable lunch boxes, straws, and plastic bags. The color of the works in the series is a uniform black, recalling the image of both crude oil and traditional ink and wash paintings by artists like Sesshu Toyo. The proportions of the table, the oil rig and the arrangement of the islands are based on the dimensions of the kare-sansui (dry landscape) at the famous Ryoan-ji garden in Kyoto. This work was made against the backdrop of recent disputes between China and Japan regarding the East Asian maritime border, which dictates rights over the exploitation of natural resources and has fallen into question with the territorial expansion of China.
By using the technique of down-scaling in his work, Iwasaki facilitates a bird’s eye view perspective that links individual landscapes to a vision of the world as a whole. When viewed as part of history, our lifetime on earth can be understood as very short, the geography of the earth itself changing incredibly slowly during this time. Iwasaki’s unique point of view locates us in the here and now at the center of these goings on and suggests possibilities about how we may proceed from this point of origin.

[Related Event]
Talk Event & Party: “Venice Biennale and Beyond”
Event Date: Oct. 22 (Sun)
15:30-16:30 Talk
16:30-19:00 Party (All-you-can-drink & buffet-style dinner)
Speakers: Takahiro Iwasaki (artist), Mizuki Takahashi (Co-Director, MILL6 Foundation)
Admission: ¥4000 (tax inc., booking required)
Venue: T.Y. Harbor River Lounge (Tennozu)

*Please see the official website for further details and booking.
*Event in Japanese.

Schedule

Oct 21 (Sat) 2017-Dec 16 (Sat) 2017 

Opening Hours Information

Hours
11:00-18:00
Fridays closing at 20:00
Closed
Monday, Sunday, Holidays
Notice
Closed on Sundays, Mondays and Public Holidays. Closing 20:00 on Fridays.

Opening Reception Oct 21 (Sat) 2017 18:00 - 20:00

FeeFree
VenueUrano
https://urano.tokyo
Location3F Terrada Art Complex, 1-33-10 Higashi Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 140-0002
Access8 minute walk from Tennozu Isle Station on the Tokyo Monorail or Rinkai line. From JR Shinagawa station, take the Toei bus (towards Yashio Park Town), and get off at Tennouzubashi. The venue is 3 minute walk from there.
Phone03-6433-2303
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