Spiral is pleased to present “Ascending Art Annual Vol.3,” the third in a series of group exhibitions showcasing the work of female artists.
This year’s theme is “Song to Life, Struggles of the Soul.” Though we take it for granted that we can live our lives in peace, the everyday world is nonetheless visited by sudden misfortune, from tragic incidents to unforeseen accidents and terrible diseases.
While the birth of new life is indeed something always miraculous and joyful, we feel alienated by the political expectations and oppressive social structures people face. As such, we must take nothing for grant and keep on helping the young to overcome this chain of uncertainties and grow up safely.
All life on earth infinitely struggles; it is fragile and ephemeral. And yet by carefully interweaving and connecting each other through family, the environment, and society, we are able to create sturdy and supple modes of life.
This exhibition presents three energetic artists whose work bears a sense of uncertainty, despair, and other forms of spiritual stagnation while also resoundingly celebrating the dynamism of life and sharing the fortitude by which we can continue moving forward toward a brighter future.
Ascending Art Annual Vol.3 : Song to Life, Struggles of the Soul
Dates:4 (Thu.) - 23(Tue.) July, 2019
Venue:Spiral Garden(Spiral 1F)
Admission Free
For more information : +81(0)3-3498-1171(Spiral)
Organized by Wacoal Art Center
Planned by Spiral
In cooperation with WACOAL STUDYHALL KYOTO
Supported by island JAPAN co., Ltd, agnès b.Japan Inc.,Mitoyo City(Kanagawa Prefesture), Fondation Tara Océan
Artists
Maki Ohkojima
The exhibits comprise a new work by Ohkojima as well as four previous pieces themed around whales that were arranged as a large-scale installation for the solo exhibition “eye of whale” at an aquarium in Paris. Focusing on the phenomenon of whale fall, whereby an ecosystem forms when the carcass of a whale sinks to the ocean floor and is eaten by other creatures, Ohkojima uses painting materials like acrylics, crayons, and spray cans as well as manmade objects like fishing nets or plastic found on the shore on Awashima, an island in the Seto Inland Sea, to dynamically portray the cycle of life and the constant flux of everything in our world. Experience a story of life on a planetary scale, depicted by whales roaming around a roughly 15-meter-wide atrium space.
Yurie Kawagoe
Eighteen examples of Kawagoe’s recent work is on display, including her major piece Insect Specimen of a Coward (2013) from the seventh in the series of “Aperto” solo exhibitions at the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa as well as Specimen of Jealousy (2015), which features insects with red lumps on their backs symbolizing the titular emotion. Taking the seemingly negative emotions of human jealousy, loneliness, and weakness, Kawagoe substitutes them with highly fantastical insects, which she then arranges systematically as specimens. Enjoy the world of diverse emotions and “cowards” that emerges from Kawagoe’s detailed observations.
Yuriko Sasaoka
This exhibit is Gyro, a video installation that won the Excellence Award at the “Kyoto Art for Tomorrow 2019—Selected Artists in Kyoto” exhibition. According to Sasaoka, the Japanese have borne a deep love for nature capable of forgiving even the many calamities that have continued to inflict damage so immense they might even be regarded as the work of the devil. The exhibit explores this idea of forgiveness through the portrayal of a vibrant world comprising images of the devil from various religions.