Yotsuya Mikakunin Studio
I visited the late phase of “Painting-Exercise (Rough Dimension)”, a three-part exhibition being held at Mikakunin Studio. This is finally the last installment.
The early phase can be found here.
The middle phase can be found here.
“Painting-Exercise (Rough Dimension)” Late Phase
This time, works greeted visitors as soon as they entered the venue. A distinct “different from before” atmosphere heightened my expectations.
The most striking was the corner devoted to Renichiro Tada. It’s a space where his “Red Person” works are lined up one after another.
Only this room stands independently. According to Tada, he wanted to create a space like a “Rothko Room”.
Every work is newly painted for this occasion, except for one shown in the previous middle phase. It was overwhelming and superb.
Summary
I was able to visit all three phases — early, middle, and late. As it was a paid exhibition at 700 yen per entry, my total came to 2,100 yen.
For an exhibition made up entirely of young artists rather than historical works, it was an unusual approach to charge admission, but I believe it turned out to be a passionate exhibition thanks to that very youthfulness. This was especially evident in the final “late phase” — the venue was filled with the energy of artists making new work and facing the exhibition during the run of the show. The artists’ power to keep experimenting through trial and error came through, and it felt like one form of contemporary art, so I came away with a positive impression throughout.
Unfortunately I was not able to purchase any works, but I did see several that left an impression on me.
Their future activities will likely go in different directions, but I’d like to keep an eye on the young artists I encountered through this exhibition. I wish them all the best!
絵画・運動（ラフ次元）終了しました。全会期でちょうど500名もの方がいらしてくださいました。本当にありがとうございました。いただいたたくさんのご意見を今後の運営に活かしていきたいと思います。至らないところがまだまだありますがコツコツと精進していきます。今後ともよろしくお願いします。 pic.twitter.com/w6AjrXlUm3
— 黒坂 祐 (@yu_kurosaka) 2018年10月15日
Summary
A joint exhibition of young artists split across three phases.
While there were concerns about whether a paid event would draw an audience, the gallery seems to have been relatively lively, drawing steady attention.
The movements of exhibited works produced through short-term production activities were fascinating, and the process of trial and error came through, giving me a fresh sense of the scene.
I look forward to what these participating artists do next.
