Not only does TAAKK offer quality clothes, but the brand also creates never-before-seen items by developing original fabrics, which are the foundation and the source of design inspiration. By utilizing a material that changes, making it look like a gradation, the boundary between a jacket and shirt blurs, and two become one. And by distressing denim through weaving, as opposed to adding the effect in a manufactured way, a classic clothing item could reveal a new side. TAAKK’s trait is that while the fabric and clothes, made with top-tier technology, have an off-kilter air, one could easily incorporate them into their wardrobe.

This two-part interview digs into TAAKK’s philosophy behind making clothes, highlighting the brand’s fabrics. In part two, Morikawa spoke to us about some spring/summer 2022 pieces and the power of clothes.

Mixing fabrics with gimmicks and elevated design

–Within your latest collection, I was especially surprised by the series of clothes with gradating fabrics. The clothes, such as trench coats and bomber jackets, transform because the fabrics shift from one to another. What aspect did you focus on and update?

Takuya Morikawa (Morikawa): Because this series is still freshly new, we had so much fun when we made the first one. We tested out different materials for the following collection, but this time around, my covert aim was to bring out a thickness and roundness to the clothes. Until recently, we used single weave fabrics, but we used double weave fabrics to add some volume this time.

–You sought to create high-quality fabrics instead of just having an idea in mind.

Morikawa: I didn’t know to what extent I could update them at first. But I finally started to get an understanding by working with a weaver to create prototypes. For the first year since the outbreak of covid, we raised the standard of our staple items by pouring energy into technological development instead of just artistic expression.

–The flower embroidery that aligns with the gradated fabrics caught my eye, too.

Morikawa: We added this embroidery of growing cherry blossom branches to match the fabric gradation. I wanted to create an elevated feel with this design, aside from the technical surprise of the fabric. The overarching objective was about how to add artistic expression to the techniques we had developed during covid.

–This linen jacket changes into a cotton shirt toward the hem and can be tucked in. In past interviews, you’ve said that you first look at a finished fabric and consider how it could take form. I feel like you made this in that exact way.

Morikawa: The more differences there are in the materials, the easier it is to create contrasts with the shape. I try to make clothes that match the fabric’s characteristics. It’s like, I don’t force the design, but create the form that each material demands instead.

–What other fabrics do you have?

Morikawa: This clothing item with a lily motif is what’s called cut jacquard, commonly seen in womenswear. I like how the large patterns contrast with the relaxed fit. With jacquard fabrics, the size you could make is limited, and not many machines could make them this big. But this product was made possible because I knew a place that could produce it.

–Do you also make clothes from manipulated ready-made fabrics?

Morikawa: Yes, but we add different treatments to transform them into never-before-seen fabrics. We use a burnout technique, which dissolves cotton, for fabrics that anyone who makes clothes could purchase easily. Then, we add pigments to create a contrast (between the translucent and pigmented part), resulting in a fabric no one’s made before.

–Even a fabric we’ve all seen before could transform by how you present it.

Morikawa: We manipulated an already-existing fabric for this. When an artisan makes clothes from a polyester jersey material that’s commonly used in healthcare and then sprays on top of it, they create an uneven texture because they’re human. That’s what makes the fabric look like leather. This fabric wasn’t supposed to be for fashion, but I choose fabrics that suit different treatments.

–Do factories understand such bold ideas right away?

Morikawa: If we know in advance what each factory can do, we can make suggestions like, “If we do it this way, we can make so-and-so” because we also have the experience. It’s fun to think about the logic behind fabric production.

Aiming to create clothes that marry the beauty of nature and technology

–What feelings did you pour into the theme of your latest collection, nature?

Morikawa: I wanted to go with a happy theme because I thought by the time I presented this collection, covid would be over, and I could go to Paris. Nature is something everyone likes, and I felt drawn to the power of nature. Since everyone’s constantly collaborating, I decided to “collaborate” with the earth as though it were an artist (laughs).

–You utilized images of the earth and the coastline made by waves.

Morikawa: We humans can’t draw this formative beauty even if we wanted to, and it has an uncalculated beauty. I wanted to integrate the image with the technology instead of just printing it. I used the word “collaboration” because I wanted to create a garment that mixed the beauty of nature with technology.

–This also seems like the scenery’s gradually melting away into nothingness via gradation. How did you make it?

Morikawa: The fabric changes from a non-translucent white to a translucent black. When you print a pattern on it, it shows on the non-translucent white but not on the translucent black. That’s why the pattern looks like it’s gradually fading away.

–What a great idea!

Morikawa: For people who make clothes, it’s common knowledge that inkjet prints don’t show on a black background, so my idea uses that. But it’s difficult to print and cut the graphic to fit the pattern of the garment.

–The tie-dye print also had a strong punch.

Morikawa: If you drip paint on water, it spreads beautifully. I pictured that and made this graphic because I thought it’d look lovely if a flower dissolved in water. So, upon first glance, you might not be able to tell what it is, but it originated from a flower.

The magic of clothes, and the duty of a designer

–You showed your collection through a video this season. I was impressed when you said that your mission as a designer is to make the person wearing your clothes happy for the day.

Morikawa: I think that’s the most important job of a designer. You know how you feel awful when you spend the day in a shirt that doesn’t match your mood? It makes you not want to see people. But on days you wear your favorite clothes, you feel so happy. That’s the power of clothes. It’s the designer’s mission to make clothes like that with everything they got.

–Often, we wear what we think is genuinely cool without putting too much thought into it. But when I see clothes that surprise me, it reminds me that fashion is fun, fundamentally. Your brand, TAAKK, makes clothes like that.

Morikawa: I want to respond to that, and I believe our clothes convey something to the person wearing them. I often say, “I design without designing.” While I do design to bring forth a strong individuality as a brand, I prioritize making clothes that correspond to the wearer’s lifestyle. Sometimes people call surface-level cutting and pasting “fashion design,” but you can’t convey anything if it’s superficial. I want to show how strong the core of my brand is.

–You can say the design of fabrics is foundational, as they touch the skin.

Morikawa: Clothes are a culmination of different elements. People should start designing from the most fundamental part: the fabric. Three-star chefs utilize vegetables from contract farmers, not from supermarkets. They choose vegetables that fit their dish, communicate with the producers, and take time to create something that moves the customer. Fashion is the same. That’s why I study threads, try to understand everything about looms, and go in and talk to artisans about what I’m searching for. I keep on doing what I should be doing.

Photography Kohei Omachi
Translation Lena Grace Suda

The post The philosophy of TAAKK revealed through fabrics (part II): clothes for brightening up people’s day appeared first on TOKION - Cutting edge culture and fashion information.

Not only does TAAKK offer quality clothes, but the brand also creates never-before-seen garments by developing original fabrics, which are the foundation and the source of design inspiration. By utilizing a material that changes, making it look like a gradation, the boundary between a jacket and shirt blurs, and two become one. And by distressing denim through weaving, as opposed to adding the effect in a manufactured way, a classic clothing item could reveal a new side. TAAKK’s trait is that while the fabric and clothes, made with top-tier technology, have an off-kilter air, one could easily incorporate them into their wardrobe.

This two-part interview digs into TAAKK’s philosophy behind making clothes, highlighting the brand’s fabrics. In part one, Morikawa talked to us about his past collections and the fabrics that keep evolving while retaining their classic quality.

TAAKK’s debut collection, in which ready-made fabrics were manipulated and reworked into different fabrics

–Did you have a focus on fabrics since you founded TAAKK?

Takuya Morikawa (Morikawa): Yes. I believed in the potential of fabrics and explored how to express them through clothes.

–I heard you worked with ready-made fabrics at first.

Morikawa: I didn’t have money back then and couldn’t ask anyone to weave fabrics from scratch. With that said, I could only make something similar to other brands If I were to patch different ready-made pieces together. For the first two seasons after my debut, I searched for ways to transform already-existing fabrics into something original by manipulating them.

–Which clothing item from your debut collection left an impression on you?

Morikawa: I have such an emotional attachment to this jacket. We superimposed the bias and normal grainlines of the same plaid fabric. Then we thoroughly melted more than half of the bias plaid fabric, thus complexly blending two of the same plaid fabrics. For the following collection, we made a mixed-print jacket by combining a herringbone and taffeta fabric via needle punching. I asked a manufacturer that I’ve been close to since [I previously worked at] Issey Miyake to do it.

–When did you begin creating original fabrics?

Morikawa: I started from my third season, but it was tough. I made some failures too.

–What do you mean by that?

Morikawa: I used all of the ideas and processing techniques I had accumulated. Money, too. I gradually began studying weaving because I needed to think of even newer ideas, but I couldn’t do it as well as I wished. The things you can do with that are more limited than manufacturing clothes.

–I feel like your brand started focusing on creating fabrics with jeans with woven, distressed details.

Morikawa: That means a lot to me. It’s been four or five years since we first introduced that. Usually, people alter jeans after they’re complete. But with this project, I thought we could create something entirely different if we weaved the distressed pattern at the first stages. We converted whiskers, honeycombs, and the faded color that you see when people wear jeans into data and mimicked them using jacquard fabric. We scanned genuine denim to do it, so it doesn’t look weird.

–You make them every season as a staple item.

Morikawa: They didn’t sell well at first. I thought it was such a great project, but it sadly didn’t take off. I kept at it because it frustrated me, and they ended up as a staple (laughs). We still sell them every season by changing them up slightly each time.

Looking for a gem of inspiration

–The series that use fabrics where one color gradates to another are exemplary.

Morikawa: When that was complete, I was over the moon. It made me feel like anything was possible.

–How long did it take to develop that fabric?

Morikawa: It was complete after one collection since I found the gem.

–What do you mean by “gem”?

Morikawa: This is the gem (source of inspiration) of the series. It might’ve been a sample or something that sold in stores. Some shops with weaving supplies have a room with old woven materials. That’s where I tirelessly look for fabrics. It doesn’t look enticing like this, but it’s a gem. I figured the transparent part must also be beneath the yellow part.

–And you applied that to your work?

Morikawa: When I found this, I thought someone could make a transparent bomber jacket. I asked this person to make it with nylon and make it transparent halfway through because I thought it’d be possible. And it went well. We were in the middle of making our spring/summer collection, so they tested making many shirts that go from linen to cotton.

–I didn’t know you started from this sample-ish thing.

Morikawa: What’s important is if something can make me excited. Issey Miyake-san taught me to look for a gem and expand from that. Issey-san told me when I go onsite and find something that has potential, even if it’s a little bit, it’s better to start working on that. I cherish his words.

–So, it’s key to go to different factories and see what you can do.

Morikawa: Yeah. I had the vision for this series from way before. For a long time, I thought it’d be interesting if one fabric could be woven into another, but the weaver I knew couldn’t do it. I looked up different weavers and went to one unannounced. They showed me the stock room, and, low and behold, I found this gem. They also taught me how they made the fabric.

–Having a collaborative relationship with manufacturers is essential.

Morikawa: The people who work in such factories, who give me the time of day to work on weird fabrics, are such characters. They would call me saying, “We made something great!” in a happy tone. Being able to motivate artisans is also a vital skill for designers.

Believing in common sense and putting in the work

–As a brand, what sort of significance does developing materials have?

Morikawa: I believe I’m just doing something we brands should do. Of course, I draw a lot to envision the finished product. I doubt I could accurately ask a patternmaker to make something without understanding how a particular fabric should drape. It’s important to draw nice drawings and decide on the sizing and where to put the seams. But unless I finish doing things I must do as a designer until a product is complete, I feel restless. If I’m going to make clothes, I need to give them my all. I got into this because it’s fun, but I believe in common sense and do my work.

–As a result, unique fabrics have come to make your brand original.

Morikawa: When I worked in the womenswear team at Issey Miyake, I was free to do anything. It was as if we were allowed to develop anything as long as our weekly project presentation went through. There are in-house textile designers at Issey, and I began developing the kind of processed fabrics they wouldn’t create. After I moved to the menswear side and presented my project involving my use of processing technology, I got a good reaction. That sort of thing was still new within menswear. Besides, I thought that was the only thing left to do in fashion. I became independent after a year from that point, and although I had some assurance about developing fabrics, I’m now finally starting to understand it better.

–To me, your spring/summer 2020 collection was a turning point. You showcased a new idea through fabrics and then kept brushing that up from the following collection and onwards.

Morikawa: Right, that might’ve been one catalyst. I received the Fashion Prize of Tokyo (a fashion competition hosted by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government and the Council of Industry-Academia Collaboration on Textiles and Fashion) around that time. Things changed a lot after I showed my collection in Paris. For us humans, a small amount of confidence goes a long way. I felt relieved because of that collection.

–I assume that was one of the catalysts that gave birth to the brand’s TAAKK-ness.

Morikawa: But I’m still trying to chip away.

–At something else?

Morikawa: I want to try developing something else. You know how it’s easy to get aggravated in this day and age? I feel like nothing will change unless I do. Of course, I’ve accumulated the things I’ve done so far, but I also want to do something new that will surprise everyone. Plus, the more excited I get, the more we, as a team, notice the structure of past collections and want to evolve. Until recently, I tried to create wearable silhouettes as much as possible, but from this point onwards, I feel like I could design more clothes by cutting them up. I want to banish my inner voice that tries to put on the brakes, saying, “This is how it’s been done before.”

Photography Kohei Omachi
Translation Lena Grace Suda

The post The philosophy of TAAKK revealed through fabrics (part I): searching for the spark of design inspiration appeared first on TOKION - Cutting edge culture and fashion information.

Yabiku was born in 1997 in São Paulo and moved to Japan when he was 11 years old. After he had studied at a fashion school and worked as a salesperson, he began creating collage art in 2017. He garners cut outs of old magazines, his own portrait photos, and even trash he finds in the middle of street or product packaging to create his works; also, he has collaborated with designer brands such as Valentino.

At his largest solo exhibition ever—MOTION—you will see not only his analog collage arts, but an array of his illustrations, and object and installation he had made together with product designer Sakura Totoki. This time, I spoke with Yudi to learn more about his artworks that are tied up with his career and find the reason why he titled the exhibition MOTION—with the hope that his collage arts that confront the rambunctious modern epoch might be projecting something new.

Artworks linking to his career and that are born fortuitously

–I heard that before you got into collage art, you were studying at Bunka Fashion College.

Yabiku Henrique Yudi: I dropped out, but yes, I studied there only for a year. I’m the type who gets bored of things pretty easily and gets into things pretty quickly; and fashion was something that I was passionate about when I was in high school. Studying about clothes seemed like a challenge, but I’m an impulsive person that I just went for it and took the entrance exam.

–There are a lot of people out there who hesitate to take up a challenge, but you’re an active type.

Yabiku: I try to trust my intuition. There’s this mysterious power I feel when an idea comes up to my mind. As I’m this type of person, so far, I’ve been trying out various things. Instead of setting a goal from the beginning, I would rather try different things and find what I truly like to do.

After I quit Bunka Fashion College, I’d started working part-time as a salesclerk at Issey Miyake. In the beginning I was so elated to be working there, but later, I began wanting to do something different. I eventually left the job and soon after I started collage art—This was about three and half years ago.

–You started collaging by cutting out old magazines—why were you collecting those magazines?

Yabiku: After I quit Bunka Fashion College, I had an opportunity to visit a used bookstore in Ikebukuro—which by the way is closed now—with my friend. It’s not like visiting used bookstores was a thing for me, but I was blown away by the old Playboy I found at the store. Back then, I was broke, but these used books were cheap, so I began collecting a lot of them. Right after I quit Issey Miyake, I had plenty of money and time, so I went to a lot of different used bookstores. Essentially, I was merely collecting them for my delectation.

–What would you say are the characteristics of your works?

Yabiku: I heed the negative spaces in my works. Collage art itself is a mixture of various elements that organically gets overloaded with information—so, negative spaces are crucial to balance out the entire picture. I pay attention to the negative spaces for all of my works.

–Can you tell me about the creative process?

Yabiku: To a certain extent, I let the coincidence do its work. If I think too hard, my hands won’t function, and I prefer things to be born out of serendipity. I think my way of working mirrors my career: I’ve always been following my impulsive ideas in my life, and I think that’s carried on to the way I create my works. I can’t even guess what may be produced from the coincidences, but that’s the fun part of it.

–You are from São Paulo in Brazil, and currently reside in Tokyo—How is the respective city reflected in your eyes?

Yabiku: In Brazil, there are a lot of immigrants, and I was surrounded by diverse friends. The city itself was congested and cluttered—like, there would be a museum next to a supermarket. However, even though the city was inundated with information and unorganized, it was still properly functioning as a city.

I think there are similar parts in Tokyo as São Paulo. But Tokyo is advanced in technology compared to Brazil, and extremely strong in fashion and culture. I think it’s a city consisted of a variety of distinctive cultures—and that is the trait of it.

What to discover from the impermanent world—The origin of MOTION

–Why did you decide to title the solo exhibition MOTION?

Yabiku: You see, as there’s a word ‘impermanence’, the world is constantly shifting, and new things are born as well as there are things that decay away. In this circumstance of perpetual ‘motion’, I want to find out ways to discover beauty and see myself in this situation positively—and that’s how I came up with this title.

Also, I like how the word ‘MOTION’ looks. The ‘M’ and ‘N’ on the right look similar to each other, and I think the two ‘O’s look cool. Since the beginning, I wanted the title to be visually appealing, and when I was looking for a word that fits well to myself, the word ‘MOTION’ popped into my head.

–For this solo exhibition, you’re also showcasing artworks other than your analog collages.

Yabiku: I wanted to make artworks with various mediums. This time, other than my analog collages, I’m exhibiting paintings and printed works, as well as three-dimensional artworks like object and installation. Also, by displaying various artworks made with multiple techniques, I thought the entire venue itself would morph into a collage.

–The surface of the abstract painting has a unique texture. You can tell as you take a closer look at it.

Yabiku: I layered the Washi papers for the canvas of that painting. By doing so, I thought that I’d be able to achieve an abnormal texture. Also, I like the subtle discomfort that can only be noticed if you look closely. Initially, I was layering the Washi papers evenly, however in the end, I adhered them randomly wherever it fell on and pealed off the ones that were already glued—so basically the work was created on the canvas of undesigned layers.

–How did you create the 3D artworks?

Yabiku: The flower vase and installation were created together with designer Sakura Totoki, who leads the creative team FELSEM. FELSEM aims to embody minimal and street elements into its works.

We can’t rely too much on coincidences when making 3D artworks, so first, I told the story I wanted to convey to Ms.Totoki, and proceeded as we discussed on how we should put our styles into the works. After we got the entire outline, I painted as I paid attention to the negative spaces and let serendipity take over. I was also thinking carefully on how I could genuinely construe my feelings at that time.

–I see the corrugated galvanized irons used on the installation….

Yabiku: I found those on the internet, and they are from Indonesia. The materials used for the installation are supplied from different places. The work itself has a story: “A young skater taking a break at the porch”—and the porch is made of a scaffold that is actually used at construction sites. The blue part is made of painted woods. And the golden part is a collage of cut-outs of lithography printed on Washi papers. Also, there’s graffiti drawn in serval places of the art. We painted over them to demonstrate the texture of ‘having been erased by an old man with the roller paint brush.

–So, you incorporated the Wa (traditional Japanese) element into the work.

Yabiku: In my maternal country, Brazil, there was no such thing as ‘wabi-sabi’, so when I moved to Japan and read about it in a book, I thought what an amazing way of thinking. I personally feel the Japanese aesthetic in curved lines, so I used distorted circles and motifs in the works.

The most distressful part was to figure out how to interpret Wa with my own style. It didn’t feel right to make it obvious. As I tried out various things, I found out that it’s best for me and the coolest when it’s got the discomfort that is only noticeable when it’s explained. I’ve always wanted to create something big in size, so I was happy to make one. And it motivated me to keep up creating in the future.

Expressing through the artworks

–Regarding the collage artworks, there are multiple elements coexisting in one. What are the things you want to express through your artworks?

Yabiku: There are things you start to see from collaging different things that come from completely different origins, and I think a similar thing could be said in our everyday life: Because of the development of technology, the world has become complex and flooded with information, but we’ve still managed to establish new values. The lifestyles have changed significantly due to Covid, yet we still found new ways to enjoy life. When collaging, I want to coalesce things that would never come across each other, or express new values and beauty forged in the moment of fusing the things that have lost their attractions from aging.

–Earlier, you mentioned that you were happy to have produced the installation—are there things you would like to challenge in the future?

Yabiku: Like the big installation I made for this exhibition, I felt potential in creating a space where you can actually go in. I would like to make something like that again. Also, there’s beauty that can only be conveyed with collage art, and from a different point of view, I think collaging is a great expressive form of art that allows you to use different materials, techniques, and pretty much anything—so I want to explore more new ways of collaging.

Yabiku Henrique Yudi
Born in 1997 in São Paulo, Brazil. He moved to Japan when he was 11 years old. He temporary studied garment creation at Bunka Fashion College. Later, from 2017, he began collaging. In 2019, he opened is first solo exhibition FIRST IMPRESSION at W+K+Gallery. In the same year, his collaboration artwork with Valentino was printed in Them magazine. In 2021, his largest solo exhibition ever, MOTION, is currently held at DIESEL ART GALLERY. Today, as he primarily practices collaging, he makes objects and installations with an aim to expand his range of expression. He is also associated in the creative team FELSEM with product designer Sakura Totoki.

MOTION
Date: February 13th, 2021 – May 13th, 2021
Venue: DIESEL ART GALLERY
Address: cocoti DIESEL SHIBUYA B1 Floor, 1-23-16 Shibuya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
Time: 11:30-21:00
Admission: Free

ZINE MOTION
Size: A4
Page: 36pages + the front and back cover
Price: ¥4,950

The zine made in commemoration of the solo exhibition, MOTION, is available on site.
It is a lithography with Yudi’s autograph and comes in an original box and with a post card.
It is exclusively available at DIESEL ART GALLERY and the online store.
https://www.diesel.co.jp/art/yabiku_henrique_yudi

*Lithography is hand signed and numbered by the artist.
*The number cannot be chosen.
*Shipping only to Japan.

Photography Ryu Maeda
Translation Ai Kaneda

Latest articles on TOKION ART

•  A Vision of the Future Shown by a Dialogue Between Science and Art—IDEA – Dialogue on Love, Death, and Existence by Two Androids, Keiichiro Shibuya + Takashi Ikegami: “MASSIVE LIFE FLOW—Keiichiro Shibuya’s Current Thoughts,” Part 12
  by 藤川貴弘
  2024-02-29
• What Idols and Pop Culture Can Teach Us; The Fantastic Otaku World of Bunny Bissoux
  by 岸野恵加
  2024-02-28
• Art as an Open Space for Everyone – Interview with Artist Stefan Marx Pert.2
  by Nami Kunisawa
  2024-02-28
• Art as an Open Space for Everyone – Interview with Artist Stefan Marx Part.1
  by Nami Kunisawa
  2024-02-27
• Artist Saiko Otake on the Origins and the Present State of Her Art: Her First Solo Exhibition at a European Gallery, “COLOURIDER”
  by 内藤明子
  2024-02-27

The post Discovering Through the Serendipitous Collages Yabiku Henrique Yudi’s Solo Exhibition MOTION appeared first on TOKION - Cutting edge culture and fashion information.

For the third exhibition, they are showcasing Yuka Numata’s artworks (scheduled) until mid April. Currently, Numata is studying for a master’s degree at the Tokyo University of Arts; and creates arts imbued with her ideas of the possibility of ‘bug’ occurring in the real world, as the VR and animation games further evolve, and the borderline between real life and virtual world becomes vague. Her sensitivity is not of the ‘digital native’ and rather of a generation that experienced the shift from analogue to digital, and her works mirror the daunting scene of that transition. In this interview, I asked Numata about her career and thoughts etched in her current works.

――What made you become interested in art and designing?

Yuka Numata: I was focusing more on science halfway through high school and got bored of it in sophomore year—that’s when I wanted to try something different. One day, I was casually looking at my cell phone ‘MEDIASKIN’ and that’s when I thought that I wanted to make a design that would spark joy in people’s hearts like this phone did to me. Nowadays, everyone has the same smartphones, but back in the day, there were so many different kinds of flip phones—there were ones that slide open and ones that were foldable; and phone designs were part of people’s wardrobe to express themselves. Back then, I wanted to be a product designer.

――When did you start crafting?

Numata: When I got into prep school, I studied at the design course, but as I’m not good with small tasks, my teacher broached to me, “Regarding the university entrance exam, it’s less likely that you would pass with the design course.” Then she encouraged me to switch to the oil painting course—but as I started seeing various artworks at museums, I began discovering different ‘worlds of art’ that were different from my ideas of product designing.

When I got into university, I started drawing oil paintings a bit, and as far as I remember, I think I began making 3D artworks, like the ones I make now, from after my trip to New York. I visited multiple galleries in New York and saw so many contemporary arts—they awed me like, “Oh so this is art.” I was moved by those artworks that not only found the right materials to interpret their concepts, but how they showcased new values without losing the intrinsic roots of their cultures.

Leaving the ‘Discomfort’ born in the abyss between virtual reality and real world

――You pursue the border between real world and virtual reality through your works. But as you mentioned the word ‘flip phones’ earlier, I believe the people born in the early ‘90s aren’t all ‘digital natives.’ Back then, I don’t think all young kids or middle schoolers and high schoolers got to play in the virtual world and it pretty much depended on the home environment. So, when did you start feeling the erosion of the real world by the VR, and ambiguity of the borderline between these two?

Numata: I only used my phone to call my parents, but because I had after school activities, I’ve had a cell phone since I was in elementary school. Later, when I bought an iPhone when it first came out in Japan, I created a Twitter account although no one around me was had it. Also, when Instagram launched its service, I immediately made an account. I was not using these apps at all in the beginning, but when everyone started owning a smart phone and as I witnessed social media spreading through the world, I started heeding the relation between reality and virtual reality.

――So, as humans began to possess the modern tools IRL, you witnessed the virtual world pervading our lives—What made you start reflecting that into your artworks?

Numata: Artworks based on VR or game-related ideas are ubiquitous in the current art scene, and at exhibitions, placing a monitor in the room occupied with sculptures and paintings is becoming a normal thing. I think games are especially the closest gateway to experience virtual world, and new technologies like that are carried on to the future by becoming a part of our current lives—so, it makes sense for me to transmute them into art.

――Do you normally play games yourself?

Numata: Not avidly, but when I went to school in Vienna, I started online gaming with my friends in Japan. When the internet connection is slow, in-game bugs occur, which is a trouble that never happens IRL; and as I zoom out of the situation, I find myself wondering, “Which world am I in now?” My friends and myself are IRL, but we’re communicating through VR—I was amused by that situation. And I believe, the further development of technologies of converting the data created with 2D—including VR and projection mapping—into 3D, could cause bugs in IRL as the ones seen in games. But I get that confusion of ‘which-world-am-I-in?’ because I am from the analogue generation; and people who are born in the world where the real world is eroded by the VR, would not feel odd about the world with the seamless border between IRL and VR.

――So, you’re saying that the transition is happening.

Numata: To be honest, I’m indifferent about the generation changing, but fundamentally, I want to leave works portraying the ‘discomfort’ that I’m feeling in the current generation. By doing so, I hope I can leave something behind for people in the future to acknowledge our epoch and culture.

――Also, you convey the ‘discrepancies’ occurred through information exchange.

Numata: The chain of information you see online could end up being fake news, but the same thing happens among humans, too. When I lived in Vienna, my friend recommended this drink saying, “It’s cheap and tastes exactly like Coke,” but I actually didn’t know the taste of Coke. Although I understood what my friend meant, I couldn’t relate 100% to the idea. That’s when I thought it would be interesting to portray that ‘discrepancy of information,’ and I made a visual art using the picture of the drink that my friend recommended me, to describe the ‘bug’ that may occur in real life causing the ‘discrepancy of information.’

Digital themes and analogue materials

――The theme of your current exhibition is ‘Sampling Theorem’—which by the way is a complex term. The exhibited artworks are depicting the pixels that construct the images displayed on computer monitors or other devices, and the title of your artworks is “JPEG Drawing 001~005.”

Numata: Things that are displayed on monitors are usually rendered with pixels, and resolution refers to the number of pixels in an image. I came up with the idea of turning these pixels into 3D, in order for the viewers to notice that the artwork is describing things that are 2D or displayed on monitors. I shared that idea to the curator, and we came up with the title, Sampling Theorem.

――It’s interesting how you’re using the nostalgic iron beads for your artworks.

Numata: The first time I used iron beads was in my third year of university. Back then, I used it for a completely different concept, when I was trying to make a 3D art of the 2D anime character. I found the iron beads randomly at the toy section in Big Camera. I thought that the pixel art rendered with iron beads would match the image of an old anime.

――Iron beads are perfect for pixel art but also to create a 3D art of something that is essentially 2D.

Numata: But also—you would know if you’ve used iron beads before—putting the beads together is a time-consuming process. When making a big artwork, I prepare couple plates in the beginning, and start from connecting them together. It’s also hard to iron these beads together. You see, as many people know about iron beads, I thought that they would also understand the arduous effort required to make these pixel arts and be able to picture the hand moves of an analogue human. I wanted to depict the border between 2D and 3D by showing that these artworks are made by hand, like paintings with visible brush strokes.

What it means to ‘appreciate art’

――Showcasing your art in a store instead of a gallery is a great way for your works to be seen by a wider audience—what do you think is the benefit of ‘appreciating art’?

Numata: With contemporary art, I think it’s important to experience ‘seeing’ the arts with your own eyes. When I visited modern museums during my trip in New York, I didn’t understand anything as I couldn’t read the art labels in english—however, after going through a lot, I can only understand in retrospect about the arts I saw in New York, that there are moments where I suddenly notice the meaning of those artworks and be like: “That’s what it’s conveying!” Also, as I dig deeper, those arts are portraying things surrounding me, and I can learn a lot about the American culture and history of the periods of these arts, and feel the flow of time. Art can transcend language and communication.

My friends from high school and friends who are not associated with art came to check out my current exhibition, and I was so glad to hear them say, “I’ve never seen contemporary artworks before” or “This is cool.” Not that I have a specific desire of how I want people to see my works, but I would be happy if people could casually reflect back on my works later in life and think, “How nostalgic” or “Now I understand what it meant.” More importantly, I think art isn’t just an entertainment, it’s an experience.

――What are the things you would like to challenge in the future?

Numata: In the past, when I exhibited my works abroad, I received different comments from what I would earn in Japan. I learned a lot from the experience, so I would like to do an exhibition outside of Japan again.

Yuka Numata
Born in 1992, in Chiba. She currently studies at Tokyo Art University, and is majored in Fine Art, Paining. From 2019 to 2020, she was chosen for Ishibashi Foundation scholarship and flew to Vienna to study at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna.Currently, she is strenuously creating artworks that convey the misunderstandings that occur from easy access to information, in various art forms from installation arts, paintings, and photography. In 2018, her works were showcased in SHIBUYA STYLE Vo.12, which was held at the art space of Seibu Shibuya. In the following year of 2019, she won the Grand Prize at A-TOM ART AWARD 2019.
https://artsticker.app/share/events/detail/388

■Sampling Theorem
Date: January 14, 2021 – (scheduled) mid April, 2021
Location: Montblanc Ginza Flagship store
Address: 7-9-11 Ginza Chuo-ku, Tokyo
Open hours: 11AM – 8PM
Entrance fee: Free

Latest articles on TOKION ART

•  A Vision of the Future Shown by a Dialogue Between Science and Art—IDEA – Dialogue on Love, Death, and Existence by Two Androids, Keiichiro Shibuya + Takashi Ikegami: “MASSIVE LIFE FLOW—Keiichiro Shibuya’s Current Thoughts,” Part 12
  by 藤川貴弘
  2024-02-29
• What Idols and Pop Culture Can Teach Us; The Fantastic Otaku World of Bunny Bissoux
  by 岸野恵加
  2024-02-28
• Art as an Open Space for Everyone – Interview with Artist Stefan Marx Pert.2
  by Nami Kunisawa
  2024-02-28

The post Young Artist—Yuka Numata The Artworks Pursuing the ‘Discomfort’ Born In the Abyss Between Reality and Virtual Reality appeared first on TOKION - Cutting edge culture and fashion information.

In the midst of all this, the music festival FESTIVAL de FRUE took place in Shizuoka prefecture’s Kakegawa at Tsumagoi Resort Sai no Sato on October 31st and November 1st.

Originally established as a club event in 2012, FRUE’s concept is to create a “soul-stirring musical experience.” In 2017, it became the festival known as FESTIVAL de FRUE. The event focuses on overseas artists from a wide variety of genres such as jazz, rock, electronic music, and ethnic music, inviting performers such as Brazilian music maestro Tom Zé and The Master Musicians of Joujouka, a Sufi music group from a village in the Southern Rif Mountains of Morocco. With a unique lineup that can’t be found elsewhere, FESTIVAL de FRUE has attracted hardcore music fans.

As would be expected with an event held during the coronavirus pandemic, FRUE was unable to invite overseas artists, and Brazilian musician Fabiano Do Nascimento’s arrival in Japan was cancelled a day before he was scheduled to perform. Still, FRUE didn’t lose its unique charm, featuring a number of prominent Japanese artists who have distinguished themselves from trends with creations that stay true to their own styles. In place of Fabiano, Eiko Ishibashi and Tatsuhisa Yamamoto were suddenly scheduled to play, and they delivered stunning performances.

While the venue had a capacity of about 6,000 people, there were only about 1,300 attendees on both days, so it was impressively easy to maintain a distance from other guests. The weather was comfortable even with masks on, making the fundamental factors of time of year and choice of venue a success.

One month went by without any coronavirus infections from the event. TOKION spoke to the organizers of FRUE, Shogo Yamaguchi and Daijiro Yoshii, about their thoughts on holding an event during the coronavirus pandemic.

――When did you decide to hold FESTIVAL de FRUE?

Shogo Yamaguchi (Yamaguchi): Hm, when was it? Of course, we were keeping an eye on the situation, but we’d planned to put on the event from the beginning. Cancelling because of the coronavirus wasn’t an option, and figuring out a way is what FRUE stands for.

Daijiro Yoshii (Yoshii): Also, since it’s just the two of us without any sponsors, if we decide to put on the event, we can make it happen as long as we can find staff. The hotel that owns the venue [Tsumagoi Resort Sai no Sato, a resort with hotel and leisure facilities] was also understanding of the event, which helped. With the coronavirus, you can’t rent public facilities.

Yamaguchi: You can’t hold a festival unless you’re independent, but obviously, you can’t if you’re too independent either. We started getting things in motion for real after the second wave of the coronavirus, so we only had a month and a half to prepare. But one reason that we were able to put on the festival is that we had a system in place to some extent, since it’s our fourth year of doing this. Also, we were lucky that the number of cases had also just slowed down.

――But ultimately, getting overseas artist became difficult.

Yamaguchi: We started thinking we wouldn’t be able to invite people from overseas from around the end of September to October. We had announced that The Master Musicians of Joujouka and The Orb would perform back in January, but we decided around summer that they wouldn’t be able to come to Japan. Still, we just couldn’t give up on foreign artists, and there was the difficulty of deciding when to make the call on whether we’d mainly have domestic acts.

――So you started booking domestic artists once it was close to the event date?

Yamaguchi: We had invited GEZAN, Yuta Orisaka, Meitei, and POWDER around March. But they got back to us on being able to perform from around summer to fall. I think each artist had things they had to consider.

――Fabiano Do Nascimento was scheduled to perform on November 1st, but that was cancelled. In his place, it was suddenly decided that Eiko Ishibashi and Tatsuhisa Yamamoto would perform. What’s the story behind that?

Yoshii: We’d been talking to Fabiano up until October 30th, but he just couldn’t make it in time for his flight because of incomplete documents and the lack of progress in making an appointment for a visa application interview.

Yamaguchi: So in the midst of all this, one of our core staff members was working at a club in Shimokitazawa called SPREAD, where Ishibashi and Yamamoto had just performed 10 days before FESTIVAL de FRUE. So through that connection, I invited them via email at around two in the morning on October 30th.

Yoshii: From there, we got their artist photos, asked them what gear they needed, talked to the production team and got back to them both on what we could have ready. That communication took place on the 31st. We were working on bookings during the event. Those two are both jazz musicians, so they’re great at improvising.

Yamaguchi: It’s not just an act. I thought that was great. Normally, you’d turn down a sudden offer. We’d reached out to Yamamoto a couple times before, so maybe he already knew what kind of festival it was.

――Was there anything particularly memorable to you about this FESTIVAL de FRUE?

Yamaguchi: ALKDO was the first live act, and when the first few notes rang out, I was moved. We’d finally managed to make the event happen, and I realized how much I’d been wanting music. Also, the night of the first day, POWDER was dancing while playing at the end, and watching him was really touching. It was like he was overflowing with happiness at the fact that he could play in front of people.

Also, on the day of the performances, I couldn’t really see the attendees because their faces were hidden behind masks. But there were pictures of them smiling uploaded to Instagram, and that made me happy.

The relationship between event organizers and attendees during the coronavirus pandemic

――On FRUE’s official site and social media accounts, there were some unique requests, like asking that people quarantine for a week before and after FESTIVAL de FRUE. On the day of the event, what kind of safety measures did you take?

Yoshii: To some extent, there’s a prepared format, so we put up a sign with basic information like wearing a mask or keeping a distance from others, and recorded an announcement with the same information that we played after performances. We also put up plastic barriers here and there around the stages. I think if you invest enough money, you can take coronavirus prevention measures.

Yamaguchi: There was another festival before FESTIVAL de FRUE that came under fire online, but since many of our attendees knew about that, they were really conscious of everything, which was really helpful for us as organizers. Of course, while it’s important to have coronavirus prevention measures in place, there’s a limit to how strictly you can regulate. It’s important to us that attendees have freedom, so we wondered how to convey to them that they should use their discretion and act accordingly. We thought it would be difficult communicate that by just copy and pasting a format, so we decided to call for that specifically.

But when GEZAN’s performance reached its peak, I was out on the floor thinking, “Will there be a mosh pit? What should I do?” (laughs) But in the end, that didn’t happen, and it was awesome to see each person having fun out on the floor as individuals. That gave me a feeling of gratitude, like, “Thank you everyone!”

――I see. There have been a lot of events before with the idea that everyone builds the event together, but when I went to this FESTIVAL de FRUE, I actually felt that really strongly. I think it’s becoming more important for not only organizers, but also guests to be more conscious of their actions and co-create the event.

Yamaguchi: That’s true. I think there was a feeling that it was up to us to protect our own playground. There was hardly any garbage, which was helpful as an organizer.

――When you were prepping for the event, did any unexpected problems pop up?

Yamaguchi: Even among the staff, there were totally different perceptions of the coronavirus, so we had a hard time dealing with that discrepancy. I have a job other than FRUE, so even before and after the state of emergency when things were tense, I was commuting on the train 2 to 3 days a week, and we did a FRUE live stream in April and June, so I wasn’t afraid of going out or meeting up with people.

On the other hand, some of our outsourced staff on sound, lighting, and stage direction had all their gigs cancelled from around February, and had been sitting at home doing Grateful Dead puzzles. Although, it’s not really a laughing matter…I had a meeting with the staff around August, and everyone looked depressed.

Other core staff members told us that if we didn’t take proper coronavirus prevention measures, they couldn’t help out this year. So I realized that depending on people’s environment and the information they were getting, they could have really different perceptions of the coronavirus. So it was difficult to reconcile different perceptions and find a compromise.

For example, while it’s questionable how much infections can be prevented by taking people’s temperatures at the entrance, that’s an accepted part of coronavirus prevention. But when other staff members cautioned, “What would you do if something happened?” I was at a loss for words. But FRUE has always been about honest intentions, so to show those intentions, we made it possible to use this year’s tickets for 2021 or 2022. Our message was: If you’re not feeling well to begin with, don’t force yourself to come.

But there were some positive effects of the coronavirus. Until now, everyone had been using the same mics on stage, but we made improvements that will become standard going forward, like disinfecting mics after each artist and changing them out. There were things that we wouldn’t have thought of if not for the coronavirus.

What’s in store for 2021’s festival?

――Are you planning to hold FESTIVAL de FRUE in 2021, too?

Yamaguchi: Of course we are. By November of next year, I think it should be okay to have foreign acts come to Japan, so from the end of January 2021, I’d like to start announcing two to three artists a month who we’ve invited and introduce their music. It’s strange to say this, but in some way, we can’t do this unless we’re optimistic.

――What kind of artists do you plan to book?

Yamaguchi: We’re currently planning the lineup, but there are a lot of artists we’d like to have perform, like artists we reached out to this year, artists we’d approached in the past, or artists with great new releases. Please look forward to it!

Also, I’m thinking about trying something new and selecting the performing artists via crowdfunding. FESTIVAL de FRUE has about 10 bands and artists each, so maybe one or two groups could be decided via vote by the people who donate. Having put on the festival four times already, we get requests for certain artists from all kinds of people like labels, promoters, and friends of the artists. So we want the artist selection to be opened up to not only the people in our circle, but the attendees as well. We’re currently thinking about how we could make that happen, but this year, I really felt that including the etiquette, we built FESTIVAL de FRUE together with the attendees, and I’d like to that feeling to grow a bit more.

――I’d like to contribute to the crowdfunding by all means.

Yamaguchi: I think everyone has artists they’d like to support, so I’d be grateful if they could participate. Also, it’d be nice if they could experience the joy of potentially seeing their ideas take shape, little by little.

Shogo Yamaguchi
Yamaguchi was born in Kumamoto Prefecture in 1977. He graduated from the Nihon University College of Arts in Literary Arts. His first experience of live performances was watching rakugo [traditional Japanese comic storytelling] performed live by the Master Danshi Tatekawa when he was just 10 years old. After graduating from university, he worked as a freelance writer while also doing a wide range of work. His experience includes event production and management at Expo 2005, Greenroom Festival (2006), and TAICOCLUB (2006), and a life-changing role as a core staff member in the latter stages of True People’s CELEBRATION 2006 and Organic Groove. Since March 2012, he has been organizing FRUE around two to three times a year with Daijiro Yoshii, and since 2017, he has been producing and directing the outdoor music festival FESTIVAL de FRUE every November in Kakegawa, Shizuoka.

We asked several artists who played at THE HALL stage about their thoughts and feelings around performing. (Listed in order of appearance)

Ramza

The organizers set up an event that felt so open that it made us completely forget about how suffocating the coronavirus pandemic has been. The location and the food were amazing, and the infrastructure was properly thought out to ensure that there was no stress. Although FRUE normally has a lot of big, international acts, the direction and strength was not at all diminished in a situation where the event had to be designed with only domestic performers.

I think I’m normally the kind of person who isn’t too externally influenced, and I feel like this has been accelerated by the fact that with the coronavirus pandemic, there are less opportunities to come into contact with the outside world. It’s a bit abstract, but it’s like I’ve been hiding away this whole time in my internal thinktank. As a result, my music has become more personal. So at FRUE, I felt like I was letting my recent self out into the open.

Meitei

First, I’d just like to say that I had a lot of fun. This year, nearly all shows scheduled in Japan and abroad were cancelled. I was really moved to be given this opportunity in spite of these difficult times. So I’d like to take this time to thank everyone at FRUE and all the attendees from the bottom of my heart. I’m looking forward to the day I get to perform at FRUE again. Thank you so much.

At FRUE, I made a set list that reinterprets the original worldview of my current releases. Basically, I make differently themed tracks for each album. So I don’t make all my albums with the assumption that I’ll perform them. For this reason, I personally feel hesitant to put tracks that each have their own established sound together into one set. Ideally, I’d have one set for one album, but it’s currently difficult to put that into practice with the flow of new album releases. I thought I’d never play live, so it still feels strange to stand up on stage and play. I’m interested in the new perspective and worldview that will be born out of live performances. In any case, I’ll do my best every day.

Eiko Ishibashi (Duet performance with Tatsuhisa Yamamoto)

[When I was invited to perform], I was shocked but happy. I was told, “I spend time relaxing in the afternoon with your songs…” To be honest, I was a bit hesitant because all my songs are a bit peculiar and my schedule was full, but the live show I had with Tatsuhisa Yamamoto a week earlier was really fun, so I thought it’d be great if I could do something like that again and invited Yamamoto.

After performing, I realized that it was a broad-minded festival that would welcome songs even if they were strange. Even though it was a festival, it felt like performing at an intimate venue, and I liked that it was the kind of atmosphere where people could relax and have fun even if they came by themselves. There was a great atmosphere, like an overseas festival, where instead of the performers feeling like they had to excite people and the audience feeling like they had to watch, the performers and the audience were both sincerely enjoying things for what they were. In an unpredictable world, I think it’s becoming more important to be mindful of how valuable that kind of experience is.

Tatsuhisa Yamamoto (Duet performance with Eiko Ishibashi)

This was my first outdoor festival this year, and even during the sound check just before the event, it was new that unlike other years, I could barely see the audience in front of the stage. I normally make it a habit not to look at the audience during my performances, so I wasn’t able to check how the audience was enjoying the show, but I’m glad to hear that there haven’t been any clusters or outbreaks so far. Although there’s also the fact that our music isn’t the kind of music that’s conducive to the spread of infections in the first place…

Actually, I’d received separate offers last year and the year before last, and this was one of the festivals I’d been curious about, so I was honestly really happy to be able to perform. It felt like fate. Thanks for your continued support.

INOYAMALAND

To be honest, we were a bit confused about holding a large-scale event like this in these times, but when we went to the venue, we felt like if you take the appropriate measures, it’s possible. To the organizers and all the staff: Thank you for giving us this valuable opportunity. We were a bit disappointed that we couldn’t stay at the resort due to our schedule.

When we perform, we normally try not to be too conscious of the place, the atmosphere, or the audience. But we were shocked at how big the venue was when we arrived! But from there, we had fun. From our perspective on the stage, we had a clear view of the sunlit trees, so we were able to have a jam session with the trees swaying in the wind and the sunlight streaming in. Of course, it was also a jam session with the audience, with a feedback loop of our moods and awareness. Wow, that was so fun!

Yuta Orisaka

It didn’t feel real for a while after arriving at the venue. Maybe FRUE is unique, but I felt like it was a new kind of gathering in the form of a music event. I enjoyed seeing this kind of scenery for the first time in a while, but I also realized how different everything was from previous years. Every sound on stage was charged with a mission, and it left a stronger impression than ever before.

[On playing several new songs] I trusted the audience, and I only included things I wanted to play. My way of thinking has changed a bit since before the stay-at-home order, and I’ve made a conscious effort to stop neatly packaging my music for live shows. I personally think it was fresher and healthier.

The post FRUE’s organizers on holding an event during the coronavirus pandemic and co-creating an event with the attendees appeared first on TOKION - Cutting edge culture and fashion information.

On January 2, 2021, Kazuhei published The Other Side of the Window (Akaaka Art Publishing), a photo book comprising his best pictures taken from 2016 to 2020. For the occasion, the photographer held two solo exhibitions at different venues: Book and Sons at Tokyo Gakugei-Daigaku and book obscura in Kichijōji. In this interview, we approach Kazuhei’s definition of photography, starting from the meaning behind the title.

――What’s the reason behind the title The Other Side of the Window?

Kazuhei: First of all, I like the sound of it. I’m using “window” as a metaphor for “life.” I take pictures of people and things in my daily life, where relationships change, you get new pets, and if you move, your house will change too; however, “windows” are always present in my “life,” as if they were a symbol of it. I also realized that many of my pictures contain window-like elements and aspects.

After I decided to make a photo book, I talked to Himeno-san (Nozomi) of Akaaka Art Publishing, and she told me about “the conceptual role of mirrors and windows” in photography. I’m ashamed to say that I didn’t know about it until then, but in 1978, photographer and curator John Szarkowski held an exhibition called Mirrors and Windows at MoMA, where he classified a hundred different photographers’ works as either “Mirrors” or “Windows.” “Mirrors” are pictures that face towards the inside of the photographer, while “Windows” are pictures to observe the outside world through; I may be on the “Mirror” side. However, I’m not closing myself off when taking photos, and on the other hand, I have a desire to direct my work to society. So, when I heard about Mirrors and Windows, I thought that the title The Other Side of the Window would be perfect for the photo book. After discussing it with Himeno-san, I finally decided on this title.

――What kind of pictures do you take in your daily life?

Kazuhei: I think I’m one of those photographers who doesn’t usually take many pictures. I have a camera at home, so it’s different there, but when I go out I often don’t bring a camera with me, and I don’t specifically go somewhere to take pictures. The more I think about when I shoot, the harder it is to put into words. For example, I take photos when I think the lights and shadows look beautiful, or when the way people move is wonderful, but if I had to say it lazily, I’d say that when something that clears all my inner conditions appears in front of me, I have to shoot it before it’s too late. If I feel like that and by chance, I have a camera in my hands, I’ll take a picture of it.

――So, when various coincidences overlap, you take a picture.

Kazuhei: Sometimes when I’m hanging out with a friend, and I think that someone’s hair fluttering in the wind is beautiful or the light is shining nicely, I may not have my camera with me. That said, I recently realized that I don’t really regret not bringing my camera. It’s fun just to look at things with my eyes. I would never try to recreate the landscape that I couldn’t shoot beforehand, and I think it’s fine if there are days when I can’t take pictures.

Though, whenever I talk about this, I start thinking that I don’t really need to take pictures in my life, but if they actually took away my camera, I couldn’t live without it. I don’t shoot very often, but that’s exactly why making The Other Side of the Window really made me think about what my photos mean to me.

――You take many pictures of landscapes with unique light and wind conditions, almost as they’re visible for only one instant; I was surprised when you told me that you don’t organize shootings.

Kazuhei: On the other hand, though, if I want to shoot something, I’ll keep shooting until I’m satisfied. When I take a picture, I can imagine how it should ideally be in my head, and I’m positive it will definitely be a good picture.

――Putting it the other way around, would you say that everyday life is more important than taking pictures?

Kazuhei: I guess so. Rather than taking pictures, my first priority is to take some sort of action towards a goal, like hanging with someone, or eating at someplace I like.

At home, I only have furniture and things that make me happy; I don’t own them to look good in photos. I decorate my room with whatever I like for the kind of lifestyle I want, and as a result of that, I take pictures of it.

――Taking pictures of a room full of things you like sounds very “Mirror.”

Kazuhei: I’m not creating new forms of expressions that no one has ever seen, and I’m not actively adopting concepts outside of myself. I think I can only talk about myself in my own words. However, even if my motive for taking pictures is on the “Mirror” side, I want my pictures to have some kind of influence on society. So, they might look like “Mirrors,” but you could call them “Windows” too. I’m influenced by music, movies and clothes, which are as personal as if they were some sort of essay written by the creator. However, you are free to interpret them however you want, and you can relate to them, empathize with them. That is the kind of art that moves me. I want to do that with photography.

――It truly is The Other Side of the Window.

Kazuhei: I want people to interpret my pictures however they want; of course, there’s a message I convey with my photos, so I’ll prepare something to help interpret them for my photo books and solo exhibitions. Though, when a customer asks me about what kind of design is behind my pictures at an exhibition, I ask them what they thought first, and after that, I tell them what I think (laughs).

――I heard that one of the themes of The Other Side of the Window is that “distance” that you feel from people that should feel closer to you.

Kazuhei: Since adolescence, I started feeling distant from the people I was initially close to. The Other Side of the Window is based on a woman, but I didn’t want to make a whole photo book only focused on her. There’s no quality gap between the subjects that I shoot, so I wanted to equally look at the people, animals and things that are important to me.

The woman this photo book is based on always had long hair, but decided to suddenly cut them short; that made me start thinking about the theme of the book. I believe that cutting long hair can have different meanings. I don’t know how she felt at the time, but I noticed that the timing when she cut her hair coincided with a change in the relationships with each other and with ourselves individually. For The Other Side of the Window, I decided to show her her long hair being cut short at the end: in the photo book, I used a photo that strongly conveys the long hair as the cover, and in the exhibition, I put a large version of the same picture as the first photo you would see after entering the venue. I printed the other pictures in smaller sizes and positioned them further from the first one, and in the last room, I decided to display only a single picture of her short hair. Of course, I’m not trying to say that she cut her hair and changed; it’s a form of respect towards different subjects, including her, and it’d be nice if it became some sort of way for people to move toward a new window, a new lifestyle. It would be great if the title The Other Side of the Window and the fact that she cut her hair would become some kinds of keywords to help people understand my work.

――I also heard that apart from the large-format photos, the pictures used for the exhibition were all developed by you, as well as the pictures contained in the photo book, which you physically sent to the printers instead of sending them as data.

Kazuhei: Exactly. This work was personal from the start, so I really wanted to do it all by myself. It’s not like I couldn’t develop photos before, but I honestly didn’t have the skills to confidently say “this is my color.” Thanks to the teaching of photographer Seiji Kumagai, I was finally able to display my self-developed photos. I’ve always liked Kumagai-san’s prints, and I met him by chance at book obscura at the end of 2019. Apparently, Kurosaki-san had shown my work to him beforehand; Kumagai-san recognized me and immediately after that we went to drink at some izakaya. Then, he told me that he rents another room to act as a darkroom separate from his home, in which he teaches darkroom classes; I thought it was the only moment I could ask him to teach me, and so I did.

At the beginning of 2020, I finished all ten classes in two or three weeks, and after I got the hang of it to some extent, I just practiced over and over. At the time, the coronavirus started spreading, and I had no work to do, so I went to the darkroom frequently, after I asked Kumagai-san to keep the door unlocked; I spent around six hours each time developing photos. This year alone, I developed around a thousand pictures. Of course, I still have a long way to go; Kumagai-san even told me that I’ll get the hang of it after another three thousand pictures or so (laughs), but now I gained control over what I want to do to some extent, so I decided to present my self-developed photos as some sort of prologue to my works.

――Do you have any plans for the near future?

Kazuhei: A lot became unclear because of the pandemic, but I am planning to hold a traveling exhibition of The Other Side of the Window over the next spring. I also have to shoot some visuals for a movie, so I want to do my best.

Kazuhei Kimura
Born in Iwaki City, Fukushima prefecture in 1993. He moved to Tokyo after entering university and started taking pictures in 2012. In 2018, he received the Jury Encouragement Award for the 19th Photo contest “1_WALL.” So far, he released several photo books: piano (2015, independently printed), Gakufu (2016, independently printed), Sodemaku (2018, aptp books) and Tōdai (2018, aptp books). He also held various solo exhibitions: piano (2015) and Sodemaku/Tōdai (2019, both held in Tokyo). He also shoots artist photographs, and he is responsible for shooting the visuals for two movies: Ai Ga Nanda (2018) and Sasaki In My Mind (2020).

Translation Leandro Di Rosa

The post Kazuhei Kimura’s New Photo Book: The Other Side of the Window appeared first on TOKION - Cutting edge culture and fashion information.

His reconstructed clothes and clothing samples made from scratch were on display at his exhibition, Demi-Deconstruction. Visitors could not only see the clothes from 100 years ago but try them on too. He was planning on having another exhibition this May, but it got canceled because of coronavirus. In 2018, More than 2,000 people visited his exhibitions in Shibuya and Nagoya over 12 days, which cost 2,000 to enter. He had an ongoing exhibition at Isetan Men’s in Shinjuku for a year, starting in March 2019, where he changed the garments on display every month.

We spoke to Akira about the emotions at the core of his career and the clothes he deconstructed. He also talked about his outlook toward the future.

—I heard that the first item you broke apart was a French firefighter uniform from the early 1900s that you came across during your school days. I would hesitate to wear such rare clothes. What made you want to deconstruct it?

Akira Hasegawa (Akira): I didn’t have much resistance against deconstructing clothes. I was learning how to make bespoke clothing in school at the time. So, I wanted to see the inside of old clothes and the way people sewed them.

Looking back, I might have started doing this because I wanted to know why I got moved by the clothes. To this day, the most important criterion is whether I feel moved by the clothes. Second is whether I feel a sense of curiosity or inquisitiveness. I think deconstruction is one method of self-discovery. Instead of looking for something that would touch me, I try to keep this mentality where I am always open to feeling such emotions.

—Are all the clothes you disassemble handmade?

Akira: Not all of them are. During and after the 19th century, when the Paris Exposition was all the rage, only some of the clothes were handmade; they made the rest with machines in factories. I think they were already overproducing back then, or else we wouldn’t have these items of clothing today.

The noteworthy thing about deconstructing clothes is how you get to discover that the insides are handsewn, but the outside is machinery-made. I think that was their way of showing off that they were using innovative sewing machines. In terms of them promoting their latest technology, we could say the same thing about how we make clothes that fit smartphones today.

—So, there is a commerce side to old clothes too.

Akira: It doesn’t mean I feel a sense of wisdom or warmth from the garments just because they’re old. I feel a sense of crassness from the way they made the clothes with maximum profit in mind. Deconstructing clothes makes you understand this more than reading about it in a book.

However, when you trace back to around the French Revolution-era (1789-1799), you will see that the way they made clothes was drastically different.

—How were clothes made back then?

Akira: This was before sewing machines were born, so they made them by hand. If I were to describe habit à la française, which aristocrats wore before the Revolution, it would be “instant clothes.” It takes so much arduous work to make them, but the people that wore them didn’t carefully preserve them for their children and whatnot. It was all about how you could shine for a short amount of time. By deconstructing the clothes, I could see that they pursued to make decorative clothing for glamor, more than durability.

—How could you tell that they didn’t think about the clothing’s longevity?

Akira: Before the Revolution, there was a shortage of bread, which caused prices of sold goods to spike up. While citizens were struggling, aristocrats would cover their hair with flour to make it look white. Silk gets infested with moths as it is, so the combination of silk and flour is just awful. They replaced one part of this garment with hemp, hence its comparably excellent condition. However, moths ate many clothes, so most of them are gone.

Once you disassemble a habit à la française, you will see that the seam allowance is barely there. If the creator made it with care, there would be bigger seam allowances so that the size would be adjustable. This only has about 7mm of that. It was made to fit the owner perfectly, so it wasn’t made to last.

However, clothes from after the French Revolution have around 8cm seam allowances. Having that much space would have enabled them to adjust the waistline, even if the owner gained weight. Also, that would’ve allowed the tailor to fix the sleeves once the aristocrat handed it down to his children.

—How was the commoners’ clothing made during that period?

Akira: This is a carmagnole jacket that the sans-culottes wore, which points to the citizens that pushed the Revolution to the forefront. They made habit à la française with lots of fabric, and the hems have pleats too. This piece of clothing was put together by patching rustic wool. The hemp lining is from over 200 years ago, so it’s soft, but it might have been hard at the beginning.

Also, the part that’s sewn by machine uses hemp fiber rather than thread. When I broke it apart, it kept on ripping and ripping, so I bet it hurt the craftsman’s fingers. It must have been hard work.

—I think the habit à la française and carmagnole look similar in regards to the overall look, like the curve of the sleeves.

Akira: The patterns are very similar, but the big difference is the armhole. The aristocrat attire has smaller ones, while the commoner jacket has bigger ones. There is a proper reason behind this.

Aristocrats wore clothes like this to dance at parties, go horse-riding, and enjoy hunting. Having armholes that match your body perfectly makes it easier to move your body. However, having smaller ones limit the body type that could wear the garment. It’s an intriguing design because the aristocrats needed a servant to help them wear it, but they could move with ease once it was on them. It might feel similar to wearing a head-to-toe bodysuit or a wetsuit.

The young and the elderly could wear clothing with larger armholes. Anyone could wear it. People make a lot of clothes like this today. On the downside, when you raise your arms, the bodice shifts upward too, which makes it difficult to move. Wearing such clothing would make you feel tired from the weight you feel.

You can’t tell what it feels like to wear such clothes by looking at them at museums. So, I made sure that people could experience it first-hand by letting them wear the items at Demi-Deconstruction.

Unearthing a century-old beauty via deconstruction

—With what you have said so far in mind, what about these clothes makes you feel moved?

Akira: I felt moved when I saw the beauty behind the clothes. I have two categories for clothing; “still clothes” and “dynamic clothes.” The latter type is more appealing to me.

Beautiful clothes you see on mannequins are still clothes for me, as they are frozen and still. I think WWI was one cause behind the post-1930s clothing becoming more and more “still.”

It was uncomfortable to wear clothes from before that time, such as the habit à la française when you stood straight and still. The shoulder, back, and arm area got tightened that way. However, once you raised your arms and moved, it became more comfortable. I look for those eureka moments where I could see how the craftsmen made garments with movement in mind.

—Were dynamic clothes made with the movements of people in mind?

Akira: I think what they were aiming for at the time was a sense of beauty. I reckon the easy-to-move-in aspect results from people investigating different questions related to aesthetics- “how can we go hunting beautifully?” “How can we dance gracefully at a social gathering?”

In modern-day society, it is the norm to use knits or fabrics with stretch if you want to make clothes that are easy to move in. Motorcycle-wear and workwear are one of the few fields that try to create comfortable garments by working on the structure of the clothes. There is a structural beauty to dynamic clothes made to feel comfortable from its construction. This beauty remains hidden unless you deconstruct clothes.

—Has the craft of creating dynamic clothes declined because of the improvement of materials and change in lifestyles?

Akira: The development of synthetic fiber and the establishment of social infrastructures have an influence, but I think the change in beauty standards is the biggest reason. Wearing pre-Revolution attire warranted death by killing, so clothes from that period were out of sight after the event. Even after both World wars, new clothes that didn’t exist before that time were born. Today, perhaps people see sustainable clothes as something beautiful. More than technological advances and the change in lifestyles, I reckon techniques and details become obsolete once we deviate from beauty standards.

The emotion and philosophy of Demi-Deconstruction

— Out of all the visitors of Demi-Deconstruction, which field of work were people in the most?

Akira: At first, most of the visitors were in the fashion business. Now, I get a lot of curators, musicians, architects, and art-related people. Instead of talking about the construction of and techniques behind the clothes, the conversation tends to be more philosophical. Like, what does it mean to be moved by something? What is beauty?

—Maybe the clothes resonate with people not because of the clothes themselves, but because of the beauty, they have at its core.

Akira: I would say things like, “The inner construction of these clothes might move you. You’ll understand the beauty of these garments once you wear them,” and people would listen with interest. When I see people then touching and wearing the samples, I feel as though they’re searching for some form of philosophy. I think what you think is more important than what you do if you want to have a long career.

—What do you keep in mind when you create samples?

Akira: I try to lower the perfection of the clothes while improving the level of definition. I try to narrow down what I want to say and express my philosophy. Because I have been making clothing professionally, I tend to find similar fabrics, sew the same way as the original, use the same button as the original, and so on upon recreating models. I strive for perfection. But focusing on staying true to the blueprint does not translate to me being able to convey the comfort and beauty of the garments.

I tone the samples down by using a monotonous fabric and simple buttons that don’t stand out. Sure, the degree of perfection becomes lower than the real thing, but when people wear them, they realize how comfortable the clothes are without me having to explain it.

The cancellation of Demi-Deconstruction, and future goals

—Did the cancellation of Demi-Deconstruction, which was supposed to be in May, affect your mindset?

Akira: I now focus on doing one thing at a time. I was talking to my friend on Zoom during the stay-at-home period, and they said, “if the concept of time and money were to disappeared from this world, what would you do?” I realized that even if I couldn’t do a large-scale exhibition, I could dig deep into my emotions by facing my philosophical beliefs. I get moved by children and students often, so I also started a community that connects students with craftsmen all over the world. We have online sessions every month, where we converse with each other.

—Do you have any plans?

Akira: I want to encourage other people to foster their creativity. I do not want to produce more clothes in a world that is full of them. I’m able to see what it is I want to make by not making clothes.

But just like how more people are cooking at home or making their masks because of the stay-at-home period, I feel like more people want to make clothes with their own hands. I started selling the pattern paper that I used to only sell at my exhibitions every month now. They’re more expensive than others on the market, and they’re over 100 years old, but many people bought them during this pandemic. I’m grateful for that.

I have an exhibition called The Vessel of Demi-Deconstruction once a month. The primary focus is not on exhibiting the clothes. I want people to understand how comfortable the clothes are by narrowing down the theme. I also want to encourage people to create their clothing. It would be nice if we could all make clothes ourselves, just like in the olden days. Further, I would like to hone in on my self-expression until I could reach a point of bringing Demi-Deconstruction nationwide.

Akira Hasegawa
Akira Hasegawa was born in Ibaraki prefecture in 1989. In 2011, he graduated from ESMOD JAPON with a major in Men’s Fashion. After working at an apparel company as a “modelist,” he became independent. He started Demi-Deconstruction and held exhibitions in four major cities in Japan. With the concept of conveying emotions from a century ago, a centry later, he deconstructs clothes from the French revolution to WWII and makes samples based on them. In addition to his exhibitions, he works as a guest lecturer at the ROCKET Project by the Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, the University of Tokyo, Showa Women’s University, BUNKA Fashion College, and so forth. Akira Hasegawa is planning on hosting an exhibition in Shibuya on Febuary 4th-15th, 2021.
http://sites.google.com/view/demi-deconstruction/

Photography Ryu Maeda
Translation Lena-Grace Suda

The post Demi-Deconstruction by Akira Hasegawa: The Art of Deconstructing Century-Old Clothes into Half appeared first on TOKION - Cutting edge culture and fashion information.