Naomi Okubo & Lulu Meng “Real Fairy Tale”
I visited “Real Fairy Tale,” a two-person exhibition by Naomi Okubo and Taiwanese artist Lulu Meng. The venue was GALLERY MoMo Roppongi.
Naomi Okubo was born in 1985 and Lulu Meng in 1982 — both women artists. They met in New York, where they are based, which led to this exhibition.
The works depict the woman one looks at oneself and the woman as seen by others, drawing on Western fairy tales.
The women who appear in Okubo’s works all have their faces obscured.
When I asked her about this, she gave the following answer:
Because the face is hidden, emotions cannot be read; even in works that seem to depict an ideal, glamorous image, one cannot know what emotions the figure actually holds.
By concealing the face, viewers can also project themselves onto that place. And within the history of painting, women depicted in works have always existed as “the object of the gaze.”
By painting figures who only ever show their backs, I hope viewers become aware of the relationship between “seeing” and “being seen,” and of their own “gaze.”
As Ms. Okubo said, I found myself drawn into the works while my imagination was stirred.
The method of display was also distinctive. By suspending works from the ceiling or placing them on the floor, viewers were drawn to move through the gallery as if wandering along a path.
One thing shared by both artists’ works is the use of mirrors as a material.
The design is such that, while viewing the works, viewers are made to confront their own faces.
The distinctive silver-glinting DM also left a strong impression.
Ms. Okubo’s fine, careful brushwork and the beautifully polished golden mirrors behind the works were highly impressive.
For viewers, it turned into a stimulating exhibition that stirred the imagination.
