Exhibition/event has ended.
"WAfrica: A Dialogue with Japanese Culture" Exhibition
Institut français du Japon - Tokyo
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Artists
Serge Mouangue
On October 3, French-Cameroonian designer Serge Mouangue will host an event at the French Institute in Tokyo that introduces Japan to Africa in previously unimagined ways. The exhibition and performance entitled "WAfrica: A Dialogue with Japanese culture" will reinterpret traditional Japanese kimono and tea ceremony through a "third aesthetic" that Mouangue has been advancing for the past two years.
"In 2007, I experimented with Japanese kimono by producing them with African fabrics," says Mouangue, who has been working for the past three years as a conceptual car designer for Nissan Motor Company. "After showing them to Japanese audiences, many people felt the resulting garment existed beyond boundaries – it was neither Japanese nor African, it was part of a heretofore unknown world."
At the opening party for an exhibition at the French Institute in Iidabashi that continues till Oct. 23rd, Mouangue will take the experiment a step further with a new interpretation of the tea ceremony. Satsuki Chigusa, a tea master with the tea performance group "Ten," will perform an unusual version of the ceremony that includes African influences. Seiwemon Onishi XVI,– a kamashi (master artisan of the 400-year tradition of tea ceremony kettle production) – and tea ceremony sweets maker Toru Ota of Oimatsu, both from Kyoto, will be the guests of the ceremony.
"Water will be boiled by an iron pot (kama) and tea will be served to welcome the 'spirit' of Africa that has traveled so far to Japan," says Yasuo Kobayashi. "They will be greeted by the true 'spirit' of this country!"
"I want people to experience the birth of totally new cultural dimensions." Mouangue says. "West Africa and Japan have never truly met when it comes to their historical traditions, thus with the WAfrica* kimono, I realized that there is the possibility of creating something complete original – a 'third aesthetic' – that is more than a simple blending of two existing cultures."
The tea ceremony will be followed by a fashion show of the kimono that Mouangue has produced in collaboration with Odasho, a 150-year-old Kyoto-based kimono maker, and a performance inspired by Japanese traditions by Abi Niang, Senegalese dancer who has lived in Japan for the past 15 years. The exhibition of photos inspired by the garments, which were taken by talented young Tokyo-based photographers Yuji Zendo and Atsumi Ryota, will be on view during the full duration of the exhibition.
New York's Paper magazine profiled Mouangue, saying that "by highlighting the histories and beauty of the two cultures, Serge Mouangue creates something glorious and sublime."
Be sure to come to the opening of "WAfrica" for what promises to be a one-of-a-kind experience that could open up previously unexplored cultural avenues.
*The name "WAfrica" is a combination of the word for Japanese spirit, "wa," and Africa.
Schedule for opening event on October 3rd:
18:00 Doors open
18:10 Photography and kimono exhibition
18:30 Tea ceremony starts
19:00 WAfrica Fashion show
19:30 Dance and drum performance
"In 2007, I experimented with Japanese kimono by producing them with African fabrics," says Mouangue, who has been working for the past three years as a conceptual car designer for Nissan Motor Company. "After showing them to Japanese audiences, many people felt the resulting garment existed beyond boundaries – it was neither Japanese nor African, it was part of a heretofore unknown world."
At the opening party for an exhibition at the French Institute in Iidabashi that continues till Oct. 23rd, Mouangue will take the experiment a step further with a new interpretation of the tea ceremony. Satsuki Chigusa, a tea master with the tea performance group "Ten," will perform an unusual version of the ceremony that includes African influences. Seiwemon Onishi XVI,– a kamashi (master artisan of the 400-year tradition of tea ceremony kettle production) – and tea ceremony sweets maker Toru Ota of Oimatsu, both from Kyoto, will be the guests of the ceremony.
"Water will be boiled by an iron pot (kama) and tea will be served to welcome the 'spirit' of Africa that has traveled so far to Japan," says Yasuo Kobayashi. "They will be greeted by the true 'spirit' of this country!"
"I want people to experience the birth of totally new cultural dimensions." Mouangue says. "West Africa and Japan have never truly met when it comes to their historical traditions, thus with the WAfrica* kimono, I realized that there is the possibility of creating something complete original – a 'third aesthetic' – that is more than a simple blending of two existing cultures."
The tea ceremony will be followed by a fashion show of the kimono that Mouangue has produced in collaboration with Odasho, a 150-year-old Kyoto-based kimono maker, and a performance inspired by Japanese traditions by Abi Niang, Senegalese dancer who has lived in Japan for the past 15 years. The exhibition of photos inspired by the garments, which were taken by talented young Tokyo-based photographers Yuji Zendo and Atsumi Ryota, will be on view during the full duration of the exhibition.
New York's Paper magazine profiled Mouangue, saying that "by highlighting the histories and beauty of the two cultures, Serge Mouangue creates something glorious and sublime."
Be sure to come to the opening of "WAfrica" for what promises to be a one-of-a-kind experience that could open up previously unexplored cultural avenues.
*The name "WAfrica" is a combination of the word for Japanese spirit, "wa," and Africa.
Schedule for opening event on October 3rd:
18:00 Doors open
18:10 Photography and kimono exhibition
18:30 Tea ceremony starts
19:00 WAfrica Fashion show
19:30 Dance and drum performance
Schedule | Oct 3 (Sat) 2009-Oct 23 (Fri) 2009 Opening Hours Information
Opening Reception Oct 3 (Sat) 2009 18:00 - 00:00 | ||||||
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| Fee | |||||||
| Venue | Institut français du Japon - Tokyo | ||||||
| Location | 15 Ichigayafunagawaramachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8415 | ||||||
| Access | 7 minute walk from the West exit of Iidabashi Station on the JR Sobu line. 7 minute walk from exit B3 at Iidabashi Station on the Yurakucho, Namboku and Tozai lines. 7 minute walk from exit A2 at Ushigome-kagurazaka Station on the Toei Oedo line. | ||||||
| Phone | 03-5206-2500 |
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