Contemporary Art Gallery

  • EXHIBITION
  • GALLERY
  • PLAZA

Resistance of Fog　Fujiko Nakaya

October 27, 2018, to January 20, 2019 9:30～18:00（no admittance after 17:30）

I think one urgent issue we currently face concerns the trust between humans and nature. As city dwellers we only trust bottled water. Tap water is too smelly to drink. The river and the sea are contaminated so we instead swim in the pool. If we distrust nature to such an extent, the only thing we can do is to keep swimming in a virtual world. Those who have been to space all talk invariously about the heightened feeling of affection towards our planet. But it would be far smarter and ecological if we could sense the same feeling within the nature of our daily lives without dressing ourselves in spacesuits and flying off to extraordinary space.
“A Responsive Scenery：Fog Sculpture” Fujiko Nakaya (Sculptor of Fog)

Nakaya’s words convey a sharp criticism towards a society conceived through developments in technology since the post-modern era, from urban environments surrounded by artificial structures to simulated experiences attained through media. Nakaya was born as the daughter of Ukichiro Nakaya who was a physicist known for his prolific writings on nature and research in glaciology and low-temperature sciences, and had created her first fog sculpture for the Pepsi Pavilion at Expo ‘70 together with Experiments in Art and Technology (E.A.T.) that promoted collaborations between art and technology. For over half a century she has continued to first-handedly engage with the worlds of art & technology as well as the fusion of the arts and sciences, which are today recognized as trending practices. As manifest in her words, Nakaya’s practice harbors a subdued yet clear sense of resistance, which in this exhibition is referred to as the “Resistance of Fog.” Through her fog sculptures and video works, the exhibition introduces the spirit of the era and presents a document of Nakaya’s activities, which like her fogs, has continued to resist the tides of the times.
*Excerpt from text first published in Journal of architecture and building science Vol. 111, May 1996

Photo:©Laura Miglone

Fujiko Nakaya

Profile

Fujiko Nakaya (b.1933) is an artist who is internationally recognized for her “fog sculptures.” Initially pursuing a career in painting after graduating from Northwestern University with a Bachelor of Arts, Nakaya later came to participate in Experiments in Art and Technology (E.A.T.), an art collective that was established to promote collaborations between art and technology. As a member of “E.A.T.” Nakaya created her first artificial fog sculpture for the Pepsi Pavilion at Expo ‘70 in Osaka. Her series of over 80 fog sculptures produced in various parts of the world comprising environmental sculptures made from pure water mist, installations, and performance, serve as mediums that connect human beings with nature. Nakaya’s interest towards the environment has been significantly influenced by the work of her father Ukichiro Nakaya (1900-1962), who was an experimental physicist credited with making the first artificial snowflakes. Since the 1970s Nakaya has also produced video works that present sharp perspectives on society, and while facilitating opportunities for exchange with overseas artists, has continuously devoted herself to unearthing and providing support to young Japanese video artists. In 2017, Nakaya presented seven new fog sculptures including her work for the new building of the Tate Modern in London, and in 2018 was determined as the recipient of the 30th Praemium Imperial Prize as a Laureate of Sculpture, as well as presenting five fog sculptures at the Boston Public Garden in the summer.

Close

Outline

Dates

October 27, 2018, to January 20, 2019

Open Hours

9:30～18:00（no admittance after 17:30）

Closed

Mondays(except December 24, January 14, public holidays)and December 25, January 15 and New Year Holidays 27 December-3 January

Contact

TEL 029-227-8120
Contemporary Art Center

Ticket Information

Admission Group of more than 20 people
Adult￥900￥700
High-school students and younger, senior over 70
Disabled pass holders and one accompanying attendant		Free
One-year Pass¥2,000
  • ※“First Friday” special discount for students and senior citizens (Student card holders and seniors 65 to 69 get a discount rate of ¥100 each first Friday)

Related program

Also on View