KOTARO NUKAGA Gallery (Roppongi) is currently hosting a group exhibition titled "Materiality and Language: Explorations in Form and Meaning" from June 8 to July 31, 2024. The exhibition is curated by Esthellas Provas, known as one of the world's most influential art advisors and who played a crucial role in establishing the Museo Jumex in Mexico City.
The exhibition features works by five international artists: Stefan Brüggemann, Jose Dávila, Rirkrit Tiravanija, Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho, and Amadour. These artists explore the role of materiality and language in contemporary art from various angles, challenging conventional frameworks of artistic expression. The exhibition aims to explore the multifaceted relationship between art and its material essence. It emphasizes that materiality extends beyond the mere physical properties of objects, being deeply connected to contexts such as time and circumstances. Through Provas's curation, viewers are invited to engage in a dialogue that traverses visual, linguistic, and spatial dimensions through the artworks.
Rirkrit Tiravanija's work is characterized by combining traditional art materials with contemporary, sometimes industrial materials. His paintings using newspapers serve as a medium to explore how the material world surrounding us influences and is influenced by collective and individual experiences. By using ephemeral materials like newspapers, he captures the spirit of the information age and prompts contemplation on the role media and information play in shaping our perception of reality.
Amadour brings a synesthetic perspective to the theme of "materiality and language" through his hard-edge paintings with gold leaf, where the materiality of paint and canvas intersects with the immateriality of sound and space. The gold leaf symbolizes the California sun while also reflecting the history of the American West.
Jose Dávila's works exhibit a struggle between balance and tension, reflecting the instability of contemporary society. He incorporates spatial awareness into his works using basic geometric elements, creating structures that question concepts of stability and permanence. By arranging materials such as stone, ceramic, glass, metal, and concrete in precarious equilibrium, he explores the tension between harmony and disorder, fragility and resistance.
Stefan Brüggemann treats text and language as material elements, creating works that shake our perception of space and communication. His works using gold leaf and spray paint confront the information overload of the digital age head-on, prompting reconsideration of complex issues related to the politics of words, truth and misinformation, and the influence of media.
Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho creates works that combine symbolic images with bold text. Individual words are provocative or confrontational, but when combined, they take on ambiguous and complex meanings. This unique fusion creates absurd and comical social satire, encouraging viewers to form their own interpretations.
This exhibition provides a valuable opportunity to explore how materiality and language function as key elements of expression and perception in contemporary art in our rapidly digitalizing society. Through each artist's unique approach, we can see not only the static nature of materials but also how the linguistic and visual dialogues they generate shape our experiences and perceptions.
Materiality and Language: Explorations in Form and Meaning
Dates: June 8 to July 31, 2024
Venue: KOTARO NUKAGA
(Piramide Bldg. 2F, 6-6-9 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-0032 Japan）
Opening hours: 11:00-18:00(Tue-Sat) *Closed on Sun, Mon and National Holidays
Website: https://kotaronukaga.com
Photos by KOTARO NUKAGA
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