21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa
Somewhere Between the Odd and the Ordinary
2021.04.05
Press release
PDF ver.
An exhibition that looks at the “present” between the ordinary and the odd
Eleven Japanese artists as seven individuals/units with dedicated galleries for each
Exhibition Title: Somewhere Between the Odd and the Ordinary
Period: Thursday, April 29 – Sunday, September 26, 2021
Hours: 10:00-18:00(until 20:00 on Fridays and Saturdays) *Ticket sold until 30 minutes before closing
Venue: Galleries 7–12,14, 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa
Closed: Mondays (except May 3, August 9, September 20), May 6, August 10, September 21
Organized by 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa (Kanazawa Art Promotion and Development Foundation)
【About the Exhibition】
Today, more than a year after the outbreak of the novel coronavirus pandemic, which began in early 2020, there is still no sign that the virus is abating. While daily life has changed throughout the world, in Japan, a country long prone to earthquakes, typhoons, and other natural disasters, many people are accustomed to living with the anxiety and tension that some kind of threat may arise in everyday life.
In this exhibition, we reexamine aspects of everyday life that we have no choice but to be aware of. First of all, what makes an everyday thing everyday? Some of these things include the little habits and daily chores that we carry out in our lives, and the appointments that we make with our family and others in the area. There are also things like the passage of time and landscapes, which remain largely the same. But even when we repeatedly perform some kind of activity as a matter of course, everyday life differs depending on the person or family. Some of the works in this exhibition focus on tiny creative acts in our lives that we tend to ignore or overlook. Others capture the inner workings of the heart when we are faced with sudden loss or disaster. And still others express the ever-changing form of everyday life. What emerges somewhere between the odd and the ordinary is the present.
【Exhibition highlights】
An exhibition that looks at the "present" between the ordinary and the odd
Due to the global spread of COVID-19, and natural disasters such as earthquakes and typhoons, the lives and landscapes that have become familiar to us are now changing from moment to moment. This exhibition takes a fresh look at the "present" that lies between the ordinary and the not-so-ordinary, through works that capture the constant of human creativity even when change is all around, the delicate state of souls caught up in the turbulence of change, and those things that continue to be passed down even amid enormous transformation.
Eleven Japanese artists as seven individuals/units with dedicated galleries for each
"Somewhere Between the Odd and the Ordinary" presents works by eleven Japanese artists either as individuals, or part of a unit: AOKI Ryoko + ITO Zon, IWASAKI Takahiro, KOMORI Haruka + SEO Natsumi, KOYAMADA Toru + KOYAMADA Kazuki, SHITAMICHI Motoyuki, TAKADA Akiko & Masako, and TAKEMURA Kei. Set in galleries of different dimensions, with one artist or unit per gallery, the exhibition will give visitors a full appreciation of the appeal of each artist/unit, with the fluid connections between the exhibiting artists a further highlight. Of special note are a number of new works made for the exhibition during the pandemic.
The individual "ordinaries" of artists from emerging to mid-career and veteran, presented in a variety of media
Participating artists range from emerging artists born in the 1980s, to mid-career practitioners born in the 1970s, and veterans of 1960s vintage, presenting the kind of everyday things that happen to everyone, in a variety of media including photography, video, sculpture, drawing, embroidery, pictures and words. These are artists based not only in Japan's major metropolises, but also in smaller centers and rural areas, and their creative acts are intimately tied to their day-to-day routines.
【Exhibiting artists (in alphabetical order)】
AOKI Ryoko + ITO Zon, IWASAKI Takahiro, KOMORI Haruka + SEO Natsumi, KOYAMADA Toru + KOYAMADA Kazuki, SHITAMICHI Motoyuki, TAKADA Akiko & Masako, TAKEMURA Kei
●Press Guidance Announcement
Date: April 28, 2021 (Wed.) 13:30-15:00 (reception desk opens from 13:00 at general information)
Venue: Lecture Hall, 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa
Contents (TBC)
1. Greeting from the director
2. Brief description of the exhibition “Somewhere Between the Odd and the Ordinary”
3. Introduction of the artists
4. Brief description of the exhibition “Doug Aitken: i am in you”
5. Brief description of the exhibition “Kodomochounaikai: playing, learning, connecting through design”
6. Each gallery explanation
7. Questions and answers
* The Press Guidance will be conducted in Japanese.
* Please contact the Public Relations Office if you would like to attend the press guidance on the 28th April and also you would like to interview to the artists.
Admission: Adults: ¥1,200 (¥1,000), Students: ¥800 (¥600), 18 and under: ¥400 (¥300), 65 and over: ¥1,000
*Prices in parentheses for groups of 20 or more and tickets purchased online
*Tickets include same-day-only admission to concurrent Collection exhibitions: “Scales” (October 17, 2020–May 9, 2021) and “Inner Cosmology” (May 29–November 3, 2021)
*Online date-specific ticket sales begin Thursday, April 1, 10:00 via the Museum website (https://www.kanazawa21.jp/en/)
[Inquiries]
21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa
Exhibition Curators: YAMASHITA Juri, YOKOYAMA Yukiko
Public Relations Office: ISHIKAWA Satoko, SAITO Chie, OCHIAI Hiroaki
1-2-1 Hirosaka, Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan 920-8509
Tel: +81-(0)76-220-2814 Fax: +81-(0)76-220-2802
https://www.kanazawa21.jp/en/ E-mail: press@kanazawa21.jp
Press Release: https://www.kanazawa21.jp/tmpI
