<introduction> Chisai and this last ten years (4)
My name is Chisai Fujita 藤田 千彩. my job is writing articles and research about contemporary art. If someone asks me "which impressive artwork have you ever seen?", I will tell you that today.
Osamu Kokufu’s exhibition was held in Tokyo in 2011 (see <introduction> (3)). The curator said, "I'm going to be a teacher at a university in Tokyo from next year, so I'll leave the lecturer at the university in Kyoto to you". I started going to Kyoto from Tokyo every Thursday from April 2012.
One day, Kokufu said to me, “I have new exhibition, please see new artwork”.
Osamu Kokufu “Engine in the water”, 2012 (image from YouTube)
As you can see on YouTube, the car engine is running in a large aquarium. I didn't even know why such a machine worked in the water. But what struck me was the contrast between the strong tension in the gallery space, the stench of gasoline or something, and the white wall. At the same time, I had the guilt of "I saw something I shouldn't see" and the exaltation of "I saw something I've never seen before". I still remember, after seeing the exhibition, my body shaking a lot on the way to the station and thinking that I can't express this work in writing.
About a month later, he also told me, "A new work will be on display, so come and see it".
Osamu Kokufu “Garden on the wind”, 2012, You can watch video on your computer.
A large windmill was spinning on the roof of the Kyoto Art Center. The electricity generated by the windmill illuminated the exhibition space and grew plants, this is his artwork "Garden on the Wind".
At this time, he and I were before we started dating, but we were still talking on the phone every day, and often met in Kyoto. He wanted to be a sculptor expressing his thoughts, not just a sculptor who made objects. He complained, however, everyone (Japanese) only saw the surface, like, "That's a car engine, isn't it?" or "It's a big windmill, good job".
Actually, I was one of the common Japanese viewers, I only saw the surface of his artworks. So, I asked him, "Well, what's your idea?" Looking straight at me, he answered. "I've always loved automobiles and thought they would bring me dreams. But our society has come to regard automobiles as bad as emitting exhaust gas. At the same time, I was in the Wonder Fogel club when I was in high school, and I like mountains and nature. That's why I want to represent my works that combine automobiles and nature, I think about environmental problems and our future".
Express social issues with your thoughts in your artwork?! I decided to keep up with him.
~~~Previous <introduction> Chisai and this last ten years (3)