I walked into the all-white (including the floor) display space at APS-Gallery (APS企画シリーズ), and contemplated the single large painting on display by Hojo Takako (北城貴子), which was different from the picture on the promotional card, but in a similar style. The complete whiteness of the room and the lack of any other distractions keep the visitor focused on the one large picture. (April 2010)
I was wandering around in Ginza looking for galleries I haven't been to yet, and as I walked into K's Gallery for the first time, I looked across the room and saw the image on the promotional card (see below), and I thought: "Hmm? That looks like an Orii Gaz picture!" I refocused to my right - on a man's back - and as he turned around... "Hey! It's you!" - it was indeed Orii Gaz (折井和良展), who I mentioned before, here, and now he's at a different gallery (2010/04/15-26).
I like Orii Kaz's pictures a lot, but for both his previous show at the Okuno Building and this show, there was one picture I wasn't enthusiastic about - and in both cases, that was the picture chosen for the promotional postcard! Notice the large area of solid orange/red - in his other pictures, no single color takes up so much space, and for my tastes, all of his other pictures were more balanced.
I stumbled into this one day exhibit by Matsumoto Akinori (松本秋則) on April 20th, 2010 and quite enjoyed both the many different sounds and the light and shadows generated (see video clip below).
I received the artist's permission to take this video clip, but unfortunately, there was some talking by other visitors which interferes with the effect of the different sounds created by the various objects in the room. Different fans and motors were turned on and off, creating different combinations of mellow bamboo sounds.
The visual element was also interesting - it was fun to watch the many different moving shapes and the shadows they cast on the walls.
This exhibition (2010/04)) by Chinatsu Tsuna (千夏ツナ) at Gallery-G2 consisted of pictures similar to the one on the promotional postcard, with similar bright color schemes.
This exhibit (2010/04/20-28) by Shima Kiko (島紀行) at Shibata Etsuko Gallery (柴田悦子画廊) was of nihonga pictures inspired by the artists visits to Okinawa and it's blue water, white sand....
This exhibit (2010/04/18-24) of ceramics and accessories by Matsumoto Hiroko (松元博子), took place at Gallery Ginza House. The artist is from Kyushu and has an exhibit up in Tokyo once a year. In addition to the turquoise-themed ceramics, there were some rusted steel frames that were allowed to rust for two years and then coated (to prevent further rusting) that I thought interesting.
At the current (April 19th to May 1st, 2010) group exhibit at Gallery Jungaro (純画廊), are several interesting paintings by five women; Okumura Mika (奥村美佳), Sakane Terumi (坂根輝美), Tsukamoto Seiko (塚本誠子), Teramura Rika (寺村里香), and Mizukuchi Kayoko (水口かよこ), with one example from each on the promotional postcard.
The name of the exhibit is: "飛翔する女性たち" ("Hisho Suru Josei-tachi"), which (like most radically different language translations) doesn't translate smoothly into English, but the basic words in the title are "flying" and "women", as in "to spread one's wings and fly". I think this is referring to the artists following their own creative paths (I'll try to confirm this when I next visit the Jungaro Gallery).
This exhibit (2010/04/19-25) of stitched leather by Kikuchi Megumi (菊池恵) is in two parts - white items at Gallery Camellis, in Room-502, and black items down the hall at YsARTS, in Room-508 (inside and outside of both themes shown in the promotional postcard - white with red thread, and black with blue thread).
I spoke with the artist about her art for awhile, and looked at pictures of some custom bags she has designed by order - such as a really cool design that looks like you're looking up at a patch of sky through trees, that was made for a person who likes forests.
Personally, I think this type of bag is vastly more interesting, cool, authentic, etc., than any "brand" bag.
This exhibit by Konno Tamotsu (紺野保) at Ono Gallery-2 (小野画廊-2), consisted of paintings similar to the one depicted in this image from the promotional postcard.
I was late for an appointment, so I could only talk to the artist for a short time, but we both liked the building (the Okuno Building) and hopefully I can talk with the artist about his interesting art in more detail - if I can make it by the gallery again this week.
At "Project Ginza Okuno Building, Room-306" (銀座奥野ビル306号室プロジェクト) the current exhibition (2010/04/12-24) honoring the room and the building is by Tajima Momen (田島木綿) and is entitled "A Room of Stories" (ひと部屋小説 - Hito Heya Shosetsu). Amazingly, in addition to the exhibit, the new chairs and bench seat were designed and built by the artist!
The seats and bench (like a backless sofa) in the room make it easy to peruse the many stories placed in the windowsills (in A6-sized folders), while leisurely taking in the ambiance of the room.
My Japanese reading is not exactly speedy, so I wasn't able to take in all the details of the stories on my first visit, but I'm planning to go back and have a closer look. As always, the room tells its own stories if you use your perceptive abilities well.
It's not readily apparent from the photo on the promotional postcard (see below), but this exhibit by Terasaki Seizo (寺崎誠三) at Gallery Kobo (巷房), is primarily a photo exhibit, with a set of artistic black and white photos taken in Mexico. (Hint for the photo on the card - it's a closeup.)
This exhibit (2010/04/20-28) of Inoue Shinsuke (井上慎介) at Gallery-403 (ギャラリー403) consisted of oil paintings in colors similar to the one on the promotional postcard below. (I personally liked some of the other paintings more than the one on the card.)
Yoshida Chuta and the plaza near Seibu-Shinjuku Station. I stumbled upon Yoshida Chuta playing his guitar near Seibu-Shinjuku Station. He sounded pretty good, although there was interference from playback of some recorded material not far off (from the new electronics store across the street?).
The exhibit of Tsuchiya Koto (土屋琴)'s glass art was at at Gallery-G2b. (The gallery has two display spaces - one G2a and the other G2b.) I spoke with the artist and another artist there for a little - about culture-jumping, and the large glass piece depicted on the promotional postcard below.
The glass piece above is one piece (not two pieces joined together, as I had thought it might be). After making the glass, it was painted in order to get it jet black.
This exhibit (2010/04/08-13) by Inoue Charlotte (井上シャルロット) at GalleryG2 was of pictures similar to the one on the promotional postcard below. I wasn't able to meet the artist, but the gallery person there told me the artist is an illustrator.
There were some very nice pictures at this exhibit (2010/04/12-17) by 水谷和乎 (I forgot to ask how to pronounce the artist's name) at Gallery403 (ギャラリー 403). She explained that the paper she used is from Tibet, and that it's similar to "washi" (traditional Japanese paper), except it's a little rougher and thicker.
水谷和乎 / ギャラリー 403
One of the pictures reminded me of a classical Japanese print in a style that I haven't personally seen outside of historical buildings in Kyoto or in museums. (And I mean that in an entirely positive way - I have a lot of respect for those old traditional pictures.)
This exhibit (2010/04/12-17) by Kurihara Kyoko (栗原京子) at Gallery Kobo (巷房) consisted of various combinations of alien creatures dropped onto photos (in the main display space), as well as onto a collection of newspaper pages with articles relating to space in the secondary space in the basement.
In the third display space under the stairs, apparently there was a carousel-type slide projector set up on Monday, but it broke down, so I couldn't experience that on Tuesday, when I went there. The space under the stairs has some wicked-cool echo effects, and apparently the projector's mechanical noises were very interesting in that space....
This exhibit (2010/04/05-10) by Suzanne Squires (スザン スクワイヤーズ) at Gallery Kobo-2 (巷房2) has grown on me. When I first walked into the room, I thought - at first glance - that the pictures were rather similar, but in hearing their concept from the artist and having a good look, they have magically grown deeper and more meaningful.
The people in each image are from photographs the artist took on a beach in Nova Scotia (in Canada), and the artist has built upon these to create mysterious images such as the one on the promotional postcard above.
This exhibit (2010/04/05-10) by Itosaki (いとさき) at Gallery La Mer (ギャラリー La Mer) had a sharp, clean feeling to it - with illustrations like the one on the promotional postcard below.
I met the gallery owner in the hallway before going into the gallery, so we were talking as we entered the display space, and the artist (already inside) was talking with someone as well, so I didn't get a chance to talk with her, but I liked her pictures.
When I went into the basement of the Okuno Building last week, I was surprised to notice that a door I had always seen closed was open - and that there was a new gallery that had just opened there.
It's called Shashin Ginko (写真銀行), and they had a Group Exhibit of photographs for the gallery's first exhibit. After walking in the door, you turn to the right and discover a space that goes back surprisingly far (considering how small most of the rooms in the Okuno Building are).
Coming out of New South Exit at Shinjuku Station, I came upon this street band performing. After taking a few video clips, I got a handout and sample CD (with one song and one talk session with the band members), which I've just had a listen to. It's sounds good to me....
"Totto" - which seems like a group name, but there was just the one woman, so maybe that's her name? I don't know, but here's her website: http://ameblo.jp/totno/
新宿で「とっと」ストリートミュージシャン、ライブ 東京 (Recorded on Tuesday, April 6th, 2010, at 9:25 p.m.)
This street musician had a stack of flyers sitting out in front of him while he played, so I took one - determining to read it later. Getting home and having a good look, the flyer explains about "Project U", and "Project U-10", which seems to be (maybe, I need to take a closer look) helping new musicians get CD's released, etc. It seems his first single entitled "One the Truth" is being released that way. [Note: I have no idea what "One the Truth" means - I wish he's just used a Japanese title! Whatever the concept is, it's not being conveyed with those three words in English!]
The musicians name on the flyer is only in kanji, so I can only guess at the pronunciation (there are nearly always multiple ways to read different kanji for names), but the family name is probably "Nagasawa" - the first name I don't even want to try guessing.
For the musician's website, he only put one of those square dot-code boxes for cell phones on the flyer, so I guess he doesn't want people to see his website with a computer....
View of "Super Natural" (two words) performing live in front of Shinjuku Station on the west side (on the upper level not far from the smoking area). Maika handles vocals and Zenka guitar. Their website is: http://s-natural.net/
I saw them over on the south side of Shinjuku Station back in February - the post for that can be seen here.
新宿で「Super Natural」ストリートバンドライブ 東京 (Recorded on Tuesday, April 6th, 2010, at 6:56 p.m.)
I was quite taken with this exhibit (2010/3/29-4/3) of pictures by Kamiya Chisako (上谷知沙子) at Jungaro (純画廊), with each of the pictures representing (if I understood the explanation given me correctly) a folk tale of the Ainu people (from northern Japan). The color combinations and the overall effect of the pictures were excellent.
Most of the tunes are instrumental, with a few having lyrics. There is a book with high quality paper and printing available, which includes a CD in the back of the book. I'm listening to it as I type this - I think it could be classified as... easy listening jazz?
Nice pictures, nice art... it's a great concept I think, pairing pictures with art. As an installation, it would be cool have a picture set up with a sensor so the picture would have its own theme song played when someone walked up in front of it to contemplate the picture.
The sites I linked the artists' names to above can both be reached by going to a joint page (with links going either way), and the book/CD can be purchased at Amnicola Net Shop, with specific details here.
One final note about the pictures - while the reproductions in the book are first class excellent reproductions, this artist's paintings have a lot of depth in their original form that doesn't fully translate onto paper - both the dimensionality of the pictures and their colors, which are quite amazing in the originals.
This exhibit (2010/3/29-4/3) by Kuresato Akane (暮里茜個展) at Gallery La Mer (ギャラリーLa Mer) consisted of pictures (like the example shown on the promotional postcard), each with poems below the picture.
Since I'm a very slow reader of Japanese, I asked the artist to read a couple of them, and as I listened, I thought the writing sounded good and appropriate to the picture it was paired with.
This exhibit (2010/03) featured pictures by Minoshima Mino (蓑島信勝) at Ono Gallery-2 (小野画廊-2). I liked the way a mysterious woman in a kimono was incorporated into a couple of the pictures.
Azuma Tamami (我妻珠美) is exhibiting (2010/3/27-4/3) a nice collection of her ceramics at EcruHM (エクリュ_エイチエム). In addition to the image below on the Promotional Postcard, there are several pictures of her ceramic artwork here.
The internally lit items with small holes that project light are a really cool idea I think. I'm not in a buying position at the moment, but when I am, I think I want some of that cool ceramic art....
At this exhibit (2010/3/25-4/2) by 佐伯和子 (I didn't confirm how to pronounce the artist's name, but it might be Saeki Kazuko), held at Gallery-403 (ギャラリー 403), I spoke with the gallery owner about the pictures (but didn't meet the artist). I was told that different types of paper were used, including Chinese bamboo-based paper, which is apparently very thin - thus the breaks where the backing paper shows through the thin paper the picture was drawn directly onto.
佐伯和子 / ギャラリー 403
Oftentimes at exhibits, my favorite picture isn't the one chosen to represent the exhibition on the promitional postcard, but in this case it was - of the pictures displayed, I liked the one above best.
I'm not sure that the "佐伯和子" of the exhibit I saw is the exact same person as a "佐伯和子" I found on the Internet just now, but it may well be, so I'll put the link here: http://www011.upp.so-net.ne.jp/saeki/
I'll try to verify that and edit this post accordingly.
This exhibit (2010/3/29-4/3) by Yamanari Keiko (山成景子) at Gallery Kobo (巷房) is of large pictures such as the one on the promotional postcard shown here:
As with previous installations in this space - the room formerly occupied by the Okuno Building's final resident tenant - the reason/logic/art/motivation behind the arrangement is to get visitors to experience the space and its atmosphere. In this case, it helps to know the history of the room's layout:
The building used to have a sento (public bath) in the basement, but it was shut down at some point. The resident of Room-306 - at some point, presumably when the sento was shut down - had a shower installed in her two-room apartment. This shower has doors on two sides - one opening to the entranceway just inside the apartment's door, and the other (on the opposite side) opening into the side of a closet (on the inside!). The current exhibit gets you to explore this part of the apartment....
This exhibit was apparently inspired by an elementary teacher's observation that young children now tend to be very critical of one another. So, to counter the atmosphere of hearing that someone can't do something, she got each first grade student to come up with something for this exhibit, with the concept of anything being possible - to give them big dreams to aim for in life.
Both of the above promotional postcards are for the same event featuring children's art from first graders from class #3 at... an elementary school in... in... somewhere in Japan!
