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Antonis Pittas "Paraesthesia"
Mujin-to Production
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Artists
Antonis Pittas
Mujin-to Production is pleased to announce a solo exhibition by Antonis Pittas, "Paraesthesia."
Antonis Pittas (b.1973) is an artist who researches and works on the theme of ‘recycling history’ – modernizing history / historicizing the contemporary. More an observer of the times than an activist, Pittas works with aspects of safety and control, economic crisis, resistance, violence, and vandalism that arise from contemporary social and political issues. Sampling the visual language of modernism and the historical avant-garde, including Bauhaus, De Stijl, and Russian Constructivism, he uniquely maps their historical development paths and examines how each event re-emerges in the present. His research-based approach is based on the idea that utopian aspirations can easily turn into the opposite, leading to destruction, oppression, and the affirmation of power and authority. Pittas’ works attempt to provide space for reflection on both history and the present by revealing the dynamics of this reversal.
"Paraesthesia," the exhibition title, refers to a physical sensation of numbness, tingling, or burning in the hands, arms, legs, or feet. Pittas, who himself suffers from this condition, saw the concept of paresthesia as a metaphor to describe the collective psyche that is numb, indifferent, or disoriented to the current political reality – violent and destructive. The gallery floor will be used to visually induce the illusion, with a deliberately displaced floor and an installation of the three-dimensional letters that read “Paraesthesia.” In addition, silkscreen prints, printed with metallic silver ink on red, blue, and white reflective foil commonly used for road signs, will surround the space with images of people and explosions symbolizing destructive reality taken from Internet news sources and journals. When the silkscreen works are photographed with a flash, the reflective properties are induced, inverting the image seen by the naked eye. By inviting the viewers to photograph the works, Pittas encourages the viewers to take an active role in the work, transforming them into a witness through the act of photographing. Through the performative aspect of the work, Pittas seeks to initiate a discussion about exposure and concealment between the visible and the invisible, the inside and the outside, the open public space, and the interior of the art space.
Pittas’ first solo exhibition in Asia at Mujin-to Production is based on the installation shown for the first time at Annet Gelink Gallery in Amsterdam this March, with additions of new works inspired by his research trip to Japan in May. Pittas arranges silkscreen prints like a page of a comic book, suggestive of the parallel worlds of fantasy, such as manga and video games, and the reality of our daily lives. The prints show images of the protest opposing immigration law that Pittas has seen in Tokyo, employing the frame of the comic book to bring reality into focus. We invite you to face the gap between reality and the senses created by Pittas at the gallery.
Antonis Pittas (b.1973) is an artist who researches and works on the theme of ‘recycling history’ – modernizing history / historicizing the contemporary. More an observer of the times than an activist, Pittas works with aspects of safety and control, economic crisis, resistance, violence, and vandalism that arise from contemporary social and political issues. Sampling the visual language of modernism and the historical avant-garde, including Bauhaus, De Stijl, and Russian Constructivism, he uniquely maps their historical development paths and examines how each event re-emerges in the present. His research-based approach is based on the idea that utopian aspirations can easily turn into the opposite, leading to destruction, oppression, and the affirmation of power and authority. Pittas’ works attempt to provide space for reflection on both history and the present by revealing the dynamics of this reversal.
"Paraesthesia," the exhibition title, refers to a physical sensation of numbness, tingling, or burning in the hands, arms, legs, or feet. Pittas, who himself suffers from this condition, saw the concept of paresthesia as a metaphor to describe the collective psyche that is numb, indifferent, or disoriented to the current political reality – violent and destructive. The gallery floor will be used to visually induce the illusion, with a deliberately displaced floor and an installation of the three-dimensional letters that read “Paraesthesia.” In addition, silkscreen prints, printed with metallic silver ink on red, blue, and white reflective foil commonly used for road signs, will surround the space with images of people and explosions symbolizing destructive reality taken from Internet news sources and journals. When the silkscreen works are photographed with a flash, the reflective properties are induced, inverting the image seen by the naked eye. By inviting the viewers to photograph the works, Pittas encourages the viewers to take an active role in the work, transforming them into a witness through the act of photographing. Through the performative aspect of the work, Pittas seeks to initiate a discussion about exposure and concealment between the visible and the invisible, the inside and the outside, the open public space, and the interior of the art space.
Pittas’ first solo exhibition in Asia at Mujin-to Production is based on the installation shown for the first time at Annet Gelink Gallery in Amsterdam this March, with additions of new works inspired by his research trip to Japan in May. Pittas arranges silkscreen prints like a page of a comic book, suggestive of the parallel worlds of fantasy, such as manga and video games, and the reality of our daily lives. The prints show images of the protest opposing immigration law that Pittas has seen in Tokyo, employing the frame of the comic book to bring reality into focus. We invite you to face the gap between reality and the senses created by Pittas at the gallery.
Schedule | Sep 12 (Tue) 2023-Oct 14 (Sat) 2023 Opening Hours Information
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| Fee | Free | ||||
| Website | https://www.mujin-to.com/en/exhibition/paraesthesia/ | ||||
| Venue | Mujin-to Production http://www.mujin-to.com/index_e.htm | ||||
| Location | 5-10-5 Kotobashi, Sumida-ku, Tokyo 130-0022 | ||||
| Access | 8 minute walk from exit A3 at Kikukawa Station on the Toei Shinjuku line. 8minute walk from exit B2 at Sumiyoshi Station on the Hanzomon or Toei Shinjuku line. 12 minute walk from the South exit of Kinshicho Station on the JR Sobu line. | ||||
| Phone | 03-6458-8225 | ||||
| Related images | Click on the image to enlarge it |
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