Exhibition/event has ended.
ACT (Artists Contemporary TOKAS) Vol. 8 "Of the Land"
Tokyo Arts and Space Hongo
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Artists
Fumiaki Akahane, Akane Kukita, Sanae Yamada
Since ancient times, people have expressed their connection to the land through myriad forms, including rites and festivals as a form of nature worship, clay figurines made to pray for good harvests, and ornamental patterns that reflect views of nature and beliefs. These representations reveal how nature—both nurturing and destructive—has shaped the bodies and minds of those who inhabit a place. Today, with cities routinely being torn down and rebuilt, and rural areas becoming increasingly homogenized through suburbanization, regional landscapes are in constant flux, and the distinct identities of places are being eroded. Despite this, we continue to sense our presence in specific environments through scents in the air, the wind on our skin, and the sensation of the ground beneath our feet— perhaps because we possess an innate attachment to the land we live upon in the form of spiritual connection.
Taking this idea as a starting point, the exhibition focuses on the theme of connection between people and the land, with each participating artist exploring “of the land” from a different perspective, through soil, plants, and natural phenomena.
Akahane Fumiaki paints a subterranean world where slime molds and microorganisms teem and pulsate with life. Born into a farming family and accustomed to getting his hands dirty in the soil since childhood, Akahane found himself grounded to the land, and his inner world began to attuned the subterranean realm. As this attunement deepened, he began depicting images as though he were slipping into the soil or into the depths of his own mind.
Kukita Akane is drawn to stylized ornamentation fashioned by deconstructing and reassembling plants. She creates sculptural works in ceramic, acrylic, and metal, reworking ornamental forms rooted in everyday life through the architecture and craft of the land. Through these ornamental forms, which embody local beliefs and views of nature, Kukita explores the bonds between humans and the natural world.
Yamada Sanae’s video work presents natural disasters and the people who confront them. Volcanic eruptions and earthquakes are natural phenomena arising from the Earth’s internal energy, yet they become “disasters” when people become part of the land, and their livelihoods are under threat. Yamada investigates this phenomenon—which is inseparable from mental and physical existence—through multidimensional perspectives in her work.
Through these practices, the exhibition seeks to rediscover how we, as beings of the land, are inextricably bound to it, and reconsider what that relationship means.
Taking this idea as a starting point, the exhibition focuses on the theme of connection between people and the land, with each participating artist exploring “of the land” from a different perspective, through soil, plants, and natural phenomena.
Akahane Fumiaki paints a subterranean world where slime molds and microorganisms teem and pulsate with life. Born into a farming family and accustomed to getting his hands dirty in the soil since childhood, Akahane found himself grounded to the land, and his inner world began to attuned the subterranean realm. As this attunement deepened, he began depicting images as though he were slipping into the soil or into the depths of his own mind.
Kukita Akane is drawn to stylized ornamentation fashioned by deconstructing and reassembling plants. She creates sculptural works in ceramic, acrylic, and metal, reworking ornamental forms rooted in everyday life through the architecture and craft of the land. Through these ornamental forms, which embody local beliefs and views of nature, Kukita explores the bonds between humans and the natural world.
Yamada Sanae’s video work presents natural disasters and the people who confront them. Volcanic eruptions and earthquakes are natural phenomena arising from the Earth’s internal energy, yet they become “disasters” when people become part of the land, and their livelihoods are under threat. Yamada investigates this phenomenon—which is inseparable from mental and physical existence—through multidimensional perspectives in her work.
Through these practices, the exhibition seeks to rediscover how we, as beings of the land, are inextricably bound to it, and reconsider what that relationship means.
Schedule | Feb 28 (Sat) 2026-Mar 22 (Sun) 2026 Opening Hours Information
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| Fee | Free | ||||
| Website | https://www.tokyoartsandspace.jp/en/archive/exhibition/2026/20260228-7493.html | ||||
| Venue | Tokyo Arts and Space Hongo https://www.tokyoartsandspace.jp/en/ | ||||
| Location | 2-4-16 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033 | ||||
| Access | 5 minute walk from the East exit of Suidobashi Station on the JR Sobu or Toei Mita line. 6 minute walk from exit 1 at Hongo-sanchome Station on the Marunouchi or Toei Oedo line. 7 minute walk from Ochanomizu Station on the JR Chuo, Sobu or Marunouchi line | ||||
| Phone | 03-5689-5331 | ||||
| Related images | Click on the image to enlarge it  |
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