Exhibition/event has ended.
無題 / Untitled
Misa Shin Gallery
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Artists
Taro Shinoda, Tsuyoshi Ozawa, Akira Takayama, Akira Ikezoe, Michio Horikawa
For its first exhibition of 2025, MISA SHIN GALLERY is pleased to present “無題/Untitled”, a group exhibition by Shinoda Taro, Takayama Akira, Ozawa Tsuyoshi, Ikezoe Akira, and Horikawa Michio. As we enter the second quarter of the 21st century, the ongoing prevalence of war remains a pressing concern. Commemorating the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, this exhibition explores how these artists engage with themes of war and historical memory, examining the messages conveyed through their work.
Shinoda’s video work SF – San Francisco or Science Fiction or How do I Understand the History (2013) reflects on the historical significance of the San Francisco Peace Treaty, which ended the U.S. occupation of Japan, and the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty, which formalized the presence of American military bases in Japan—both signed on the same day in 1951. Filmed at former military sites in San Francisco and in the room used by General Douglas MacArthur during the occupation, the video captures these historical connections through an abstract and understated lens, evoking a range of impressions and meanings for the viewer.
Accessing the QR code on the white walls of the gallery allows visitors to listen to a poetry reading. Takayama Akira’s War Paintings / Heterotopia – The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo invites the audience to imagine war paintings stored in the museum’s archives while listening to poems about the painting written by poets from the countries depicted in these paintings. In this way, paintings that are not physically present are “exhibited” within the gallery space. One featured poem, Grand Fond Blanc (Wonderful White), was written by Walis Nokan, an Indigenous poet from Taiwan, inspired by Tsuguharu Foujita’s Fierce Fighting of Kaoru Paratroops After Landing on the Enemy’s Position. In the poem, Walis speaks to Fujita, who painted it as one of the Taiwanese Japanese soldiers depicted in the war painting. Visitors can hear the poem recited in its original Chinese by the poet himself, alongside a Japanese translation read by artist Tsuyoshi Ozawa.
Ozawa’s gnabmelaP no gnidnecseD spoortaraP esenapaJ Japanese Paratroops Descending on Palembang references Tsuruta Goro’s (1890–1969) war painting “Paratroopers Descend on Palembang”. The original work vividly depicts countless white parachutes against a bright blue sky, illustrating the events of February 14, 1942, when the Imperial Japanese Army’s airborne troops conducted a surprise attack to seize the Palembang oil fields in what is now Indonesia, then under Dutch rule. The operation was heralded as a significant military success.
Ozawa, who tries to explore the darkest aspects of art since the advent of modern art, through tracing with his own hands the story of war painting, observed a notable characteristic in many such works depicting Japan’s military valor: the absence of visible enemies at the other end of the soldiers’ guns. In his reinterpretation, Ozawa mirrors to invert the image, turning the barrels of the guns back towards the soldiers themselves. This transformation underscores a profound message—that violence directed at others inevitably returns to oneself over time.
Ikezoe, a New York-based artist, works across diverse mediums including drawing, painting, video, and performance. His works intertwine mythological imagery of nude figures, primitive flora, and imaginary creatures. These diverse images intertwine within his canvases, creating a complex and surreal world reminiscent of the intricate details found in the works of Hieronymus Bosch. Ikezoe’s intricate compositions depict complex worlds where human existence loops endlessly in absurd chains of action.
The “Mail Art by Sending Stones” was inspired by the Apollo 11 mission’s moon landing and the collection of moon rocks in 1969. Horikawa, who initiated the series, sent stones to President Nixon in 1969 and to Prime Minister Eisaku Sato in 1970 as a form of anti-war protest. In contrast to the “Mono-ha” art movement’s static representation of stones, Horikawa’s mailed stones transcend personal boundaries, engaging with history and society as conceptual objects. This exhibition features a stone mailed to himself, at the same time as shown at the Tate Modern’s Century exhibition in 2000.
The group show ”無題/Untitled” encourages viewers to interpret each artist’s work, which deals with profound heavy subject matter but lightly transcends distance and time.
Shinoda’s video work SF – San Francisco or Science Fiction or How do I Understand the History (2013) reflects on the historical significance of the San Francisco Peace Treaty, which ended the U.S. occupation of Japan, and the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty, which formalized the presence of American military bases in Japan—both signed on the same day in 1951. Filmed at former military sites in San Francisco and in the room used by General Douglas MacArthur during the occupation, the video captures these historical connections through an abstract and understated lens, evoking a range of impressions and meanings for the viewer.
Accessing the QR code on the white walls of the gallery allows visitors to listen to a poetry reading. Takayama Akira’s War Paintings / Heterotopia – The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo invites the audience to imagine war paintings stored in the museum’s archives while listening to poems about the painting written by poets from the countries depicted in these paintings. In this way, paintings that are not physically present are “exhibited” within the gallery space. One featured poem, Grand Fond Blanc (Wonderful White), was written by Walis Nokan, an Indigenous poet from Taiwan, inspired by Tsuguharu Foujita’s Fierce Fighting of Kaoru Paratroops After Landing on the Enemy’s Position. In the poem, Walis speaks to Fujita, who painted it as one of the Taiwanese Japanese soldiers depicted in the war painting. Visitors can hear the poem recited in its original Chinese by the poet himself, alongside a Japanese translation read by artist Tsuyoshi Ozawa.
Ozawa’s gnabmelaP no gnidnecseD spoortaraP esenapaJ Japanese Paratroops Descending on Palembang references Tsuruta Goro’s (1890–1969) war painting “Paratroopers Descend on Palembang”. The original work vividly depicts countless white parachutes against a bright blue sky, illustrating the events of February 14, 1942, when the Imperial Japanese Army’s airborne troops conducted a surprise attack to seize the Palembang oil fields in what is now Indonesia, then under Dutch rule. The operation was heralded as a significant military success.
Ozawa, who tries to explore the darkest aspects of art since the advent of modern art, through tracing with his own hands the story of war painting, observed a notable characteristic in many such works depicting Japan’s military valor: the absence of visible enemies at the other end of the soldiers’ guns. In his reinterpretation, Ozawa mirrors to invert the image, turning the barrels of the guns back towards the soldiers themselves. This transformation underscores a profound message—that violence directed at others inevitably returns to oneself over time.
Ikezoe, a New York-based artist, works across diverse mediums including drawing, painting, video, and performance. His works intertwine mythological imagery of nude figures, primitive flora, and imaginary creatures. These diverse images intertwine within his canvases, creating a complex and surreal world reminiscent of the intricate details found in the works of Hieronymus Bosch. Ikezoe’s intricate compositions depict complex worlds where human existence loops endlessly in absurd chains of action.
The “Mail Art by Sending Stones” was inspired by the Apollo 11 mission’s moon landing and the collection of moon rocks in 1969. Horikawa, who initiated the series, sent stones to President Nixon in 1969 and to Prime Minister Eisaku Sato in 1970 as a form of anti-war protest. In contrast to the “Mono-ha” art movement’s static representation of stones, Horikawa’s mailed stones transcend personal boundaries, engaging with history and society as conceptual objects. This exhibition features a stone mailed to himself, at the same time as shown at the Tate Modern’s Century exhibition in 2000.
The group show ”無題/Untitled” encourages viewers to interpret each artist’s work, which deals with profound heavy subject matter but lightly transcends distance and time.
Schedule | Jan 18 (Sat) 2025-Feb 15 (Sat) 2025 Opening Hours Information
Opening Reception Jan 18 (Sat) 2025 17:00 - 19:00 | ||||
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| Fee | Free | ||||
| Website | https://www.misashin.com/en/exhibitions-en/misashin-groupshow-untitled-en/ | ||||
| Venue | Misa Shin Gallery http://www.misashin.com/ | ||||
| Location | 1F 3-9-11 Minami Azabu, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-0047 | ||||
| Access | 11 minute walk from exit 4 at Shirokane-takanawa Station on the Namboku or Toei Mita line, 11 minute walk from exit 1 at Azabu-juban Station on the Namboku or Toei Oedo line, 11 minute walk from exit 1 at Hiroo Station on the Hibiya line. | ||||
| Phone | 03-6450-2334 | ||||
| Related images | Click on the image to enlarge it |
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