Exhibition/event has ended.
Urban Sansui
Kudan House
FinishedReservation Required
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Artists
Tomohito Ishii, Asako Fujikura, Taisuke Makihara, Rui Mizuki
Sansui, which was once the inspiration for landscape painting (sansuiga/shanshuihua) and dry rock gardens (karesansui), used to be a worldview widely rooted in the lifestyle and culture of the Japanese people until the early 20th century. It presupposes that humans and nature are inseparable; both exist undifferentiated in the flux of all things. At a time when modern Western values are at a standstill and concepts such as “common” and “care” are attracting attention, the philosophy behind Sansui provides a suggestive starting point for rethinking contemporary life and society.
Rather than simply reviving it, however, this exhibition aims to update the pre-modern Sansui from a contemporary perspective. Whereas in the past Chinese painters were inspired by the geology of the continent, with its steep mountain cliffs and fertile plains, the artists featured in this exhibition work in the city, filled with its buildings and infrastructure. Imagination is used to transform the surface of the urban environment, which, far more than the ancient ground beneath, reflects the seemingly incompatible, yet inseparable relationship between humans and nature. At the same time, the COVID-19 pandemic has reiterated the importance of carefully dealing with daily life and imagining the invisible other. This is precisely the kind of imagination that urban dwellers need in today's society – “Urban Sansui.”
Kudan House is operated based on the idea of having inherited a historical building that has been weaving a story since its construction in 1927 and recreating the value of the place in the present age. It is iconic for the Spanish style and earthquake-resistant wall structure of the building, as well as the pragmatic composition of the garden, and conveys the thoughts and desires of former residents and guests, who cherished their daily lives, and of visitors past and present. This is consistent with the concept embraced by this exhibition, which questions how surroundings are imagined.
Blurring the boundary between the subject and the object by seamlessly connecting works by contemporary artists with furniture that has been in use since before World War II, stately Western-style architecture with a modern garden, and private grounds with public urban spaces, the exhibition invites viewers into a world of Sansui.
Rather than simply reviving it, however, this exhibition aims to update the pre-modern Sansui from a contemporary perspective. Whereas in the past Chinese painters were inspired by the geology of the continent, with its steep mountain cliffs and fertile plains, the artists featured in this exhibition work in the city, filled with its buildings and infrastructure. Imagination is used to transform the surface of the urban environment, which, far more than the ancient ground beneath, reflects the seemingly incompatible, yet inseparable relationship between humans and nature. At the same time, the COVID-19 pandemic has reiterated the importance of carefully dealing with daily life and imagining the invisible other. This is precisely the kind of imagination that urban dwellers need in today's society – “Urban Sansui.”
Kudan House is operated based on the idea of having inherited a historical building that has been weaving a story since its construction in 1927 and recreating the value of the place in the present age. It is iconic for the Spanish style and earthquake-resistant wall structure of the building, as well as the pragmatic composition of the garden, and conveys the thoughts and desires of former residents and guests, who cherished their daily lives, and of visitors past and present. This is consistent with the concept embraced by this exhibition, which questions how surroundings are imagined.
Blurring the boundary between the subject and the object by seamlessly connecting works by contemporary artists with furniture that has been in use since before World War II, stately Western-style architecture with a modern garden, and private grounds with public urban spaces, the exhibition invites viewers into a world of Sansui.
Schedule | Mar 10 (Fri) 2023-Mar 19 (Sun) 2023 Reservation RequiredOpening Hours Information
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| Fee | Adults and University Students ¥1000, High School Students and Under free. | ||||
| Website | https://sansui.space/ | ||||
| Venue | Kudan House https://kudan.house/en/ | ||||
| Location | 1-15-9 Kudankita, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-0073 | ||||
| Access | 5 minute walk from exit 1 at Kudanshita Station on the Tozai and Hanzomon lines. 10 minute walk from the East exit of Iidabashi Station on the JR Chuo-Sobu line. | ||||
| Related images | Click on the image to enlarge it |
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