JOURNALS

Short exchange with my students

In the previous journal I wrote that Gabriella and I have much in common regarding the things we place importance on when preparing our pieces and the message held in them. However, it is also true to say that our works are very different in the use of colour and form. If anything, you could say that in some ways they are totally opposite.

Taking things at surface value, you might think that the contrasting elements seem to be at the fore of the pieces that will be installed in Galleri F15.

• Large pieces covering a wall in contrast to modular pieces made of individual parts of varying size
• Restricted field of vision in contrast to a piece where you can see the other side through the material
• Soft material in contrast to hard combined weaving
• White that blends into the space in contrast to dark colours creating a contrast with the white

Even though both our pieces contain similar concepts, despite that common ground these are expressed in very different ways on the surface (in terms of texture, colour, volume, etc).
However, I believe that viewers will be able to sense the "contrast" which is visible and the "harmony" which is not visible when they come face to face with the space created by our collaboration.

At the end of September, Gabriella came to Okayama Prefecture; I felt that we were not able to communicate adequately through language because of my lack of language skills. However, even though we did not communicate easily with words, Gabriella and I visited a number of places together which I had chosen because I felt they would be a stimulus for the collaboration and enable Gabriella to sense the “contrast” and “harmony” of the modern and traditional in Japan. The places we visited were mainly areas with art galleries in modern architecture. They were:

• Nariwa Art Museum: Featuring Japanese natural countryside, modern architecture and  Samurai Houses
• Marugame Genichiro - Inokuma Museum of Contemporary Art:
  Featuring traditional Japanese Shinto shrine, screen and door paintings, modern architecture and modern art
• Nagi Museum of Contemporary Art:
  Modern architecture, modern art and a 900 year old ancient tree

I had visited all these places before, but in taking Gabriella there, I myself was able to think again about the wonderful "contrast" and "harmony" created by the two different things sharing the same time and space.
I am looking forward to seeing what I will discover when I find myself in the space that will be created by this encounter of two artists from different, far away countries.