The exchange continues: In exchange for a magazine some people have been displaying their artworks...hats, bows!
People viewing the exhibition
'Exchange Online Narrative' 'From England to Japan' and 'EXCHANGE ZINE'
Private Preview: We gave our presentations in Japanese, ate scones and were merry!
"I am interested in creating empowering shared experiences with people through creating installations that discuss ephemerality; brief moments in time. This work is a presentation of the 'Exchange Zine' which is a collaborative magazine project exchanging artworks from student artists at Brighton University, other English Universities and Nagoya University of Arts. There are submissions from people who have come to the Nagoya University Of Art in previous years too. Anyone can view the magazines but if they want to keep a copy they have to contribute to the exchange installation by undoing the bow that wraps the magazine, taking the magazine and tying an object of theirs in the magazines place. A further exploration into the theme of exchange and ephemerality. This second work is called 'Exchange Online Narrative'. This piece is a live video of the gallery that is uploaded to the internet for a wider audience to appreciate, view and comment on the artwork. Please go online and comment on the work in the Gallery at www.livestream.com/exchangenarrative .This last work is called 'England to Japan' and is a series of slides and transparent documentary photographs of my travels in Japan and my home in Brighton and Norfolk. I made the lightbox to explore the beauty of light and to create a sensory emerged engagement between the site and the audience.Thank you to everyone who helped and contributed to make these projects."
Shopping in Osu, Nagoya with the girls! Some cute boutiques and Mollys cafe even had a photo of Brighton on the walls. What are the chances!
Nagoya Sumo Wrestling Tournament- each 'bout' is over in about 40seconds!
Thanks for your submissions to the EXCHANGE ZINE. Its printed and it looks great.It will be exhibited in the Design Centre Gallery at Nagoya University of Art; Friday 8th July- Wednesday 13th July 2011. I have set up a live weblink from the Gallery so you can see the EXCHANGE ZINE, it being viewed and the other works by the International Exchange Students. Theres a comment box if you want to give any feedback or communicate with the Gallery in real time and there will be a build up of video archive of footage. The weblink to view the Gallery is http://www.livestream.com/exchangeonlinenarrative?t=608489 The Gallery is open 12-6pm Friday 8th July-Wednesday 13th July 2011 :4am-10am UK time The Private view is at 5pm-8pm on Friday 8th July 2011: 9am-12noon UK time
You pay for a room and create your own mini club, sing and shake tambourines for as long as you want. Coffee and syrupy cocktails are on hand to get you through it. It was night when we went in and then daylight when we came out!
Adverts noise and bright lights are everywhere to grab your attention and persuade you to buy or eat something! Pheeww, tis a bit draining.
Bits and bobs of Japan: street lights in Nagano have shadow puppets in them-Basket weaving of mt.fuji-theres loads of wild cats that i think the homeless feed-i think this sign is excusing that there is building work going on-looking through a magazine the other day and found all these beauty pages on getting your eyes pumped and fat drained from your belly button!-and then good old pachinko gambling slots, where you buy loads of small metal pinballs to slot in a machine, looks addictive amongst the salary men!
Making the lightbox: Japan has all sorts of DIY and crafts things for cheaps. For the exhibition next week I have made a light box am going to show photographs of my experience in Japan using transparent paper onto the box.
How Japanese: We went to the cinema and chose to watch a cheesey movie. Japanese subtitled. Pick and mix was so cheap and we scoffed biscuits and all was good.
Paper making with Harry and Millie: Breaking up bunches of kozo into water and putting a wire mesh frame into the water, taking it out and placing it to dry. Using wire you can make 3D paper objects by placing it into the water. Using dyed dried kozo and mixing it with water in a blender you can dye the paper.
Nagano to see the snow monkeys in the onsen baths. We could take a nudey dip and see if the monkeys joined us but thought against it. Although we went to an onsen the other day, relaxing and a tad bit odd!
Nara- Feeding tame deer and getting snapped by Japanese school children practicing their english on us.
Nagano Temple- we got up really early to be experience enlightenment from a bashing of rosary beads on our heads by a monk and monkess.
Tokyo- First stop the manic Akihabara; the electric city where market stalls are selling anything electrical that you can imagine. Then at night we checked out the area near Shinjuku station to see what it had to offer; seedy clubs and ladies bars! The lights were pretty though!
Tokyo- Had to check out the Harajuku district incase I saw any girls dressed like the groupies to Qwen Stefani's solo album. Ha! Lots of kids buying trendy stuff. Then the traditional toyko shopping stalls at Asakusa.
Yokohama- a newly developed port, very snazy and of course we had to visit every pokemon centre we were near.
Yokohama- Charles Wirgman East Meets West Exhibition. It was exciting to see the illustrations, prints and paintings of Harrys great great uncle. He reported for The Illustrated London News and created a satirical magazine called 'The Japan Punch.' http://ch.kanagawa-museum.jp/tenji/toku/toku.html
Bamboo paths, Moss gardens and Japanese gardens in the middle of Tokyo
Nara- Feeding tame deer and getting snapped by Japanese school children practicing their english on us.
Iga Eno- We went to a traditional Ninja's house and saw their secret hideouts and various cool ninja stylee things like these throwing stars. I wish we had seen a real Ninja.
Kyoto again- We explored some different parts and found out that there is a competition for the best geisha. I wonder if one of these girls is the sister of Millies friend on her Printmaking course...
Mt. fuji- it is so hard to navigate yourself around this area. We checked out 3 of the 5 lakes and went into an ice cave. It was soooo nice and cold once you descended. Pretty stuff.
Japan is a tricky place for a vegetarian. We tried the Japanese way, sober(cold) noodles but found an indian. mmmm
Theres some really interesting things around. Plants that don't need pots and are growing out of a mossy thing, hanging fabric monkeys, paper crafts and woven shoes around the temples.
Bits and bobs of japan
bags and umbrellas make for ingenious farming
nagoya is great for coffee houses; eric life offers you 'intelligent way', at mollys cafe your table number is a plastic animal, they had a photograph of brighton pier, brilliant!
gold fish hanging in trees at a firework festival!
graveyards here...different.
if in doubt you can point for your dinner at the plastic food display cabinets
crossroads; people are really polite, i still don't know who is supposed to give way first...
Our beautiful view from our balcony apartment.
Look whos in the local paper for attending a traditional tea ceremony. Yummy creamy green tea in a traditionally crafted bowl that you have to wait for one by one in a circle, turn it around 3 times to the right, eat a bean paste sweet and listen to a lady talk in japanese whilst sitting on your knees getting cramp.
Films i have been watching.
Lost in translation really sums alot up.
Gravity's Clown was a japanese dvd Anna, another international student from Germany, lent us to watch.(www.pinkmonkeee.livejournal.com) It was nice to practice what i had learnt in our japanese lessons; i could just about recognise the thank you's and hello's.
Uni things: Millies woodcut private view in the gallery and celebratory ramen meal!
There was a lecture on photography, i didnt get too much from it as it was all in Japanese, i got 'jew' 'holocaust' 'freud', he asked when i was born?! Some quite erotic images all in all....
The library is pretty hard to nagivate, not many english books but there is a good selection of magazines, read an article on how Lady Gaga is the new type of pop performance artist...
The Japanese are crafty- Cartoons on cars, smilies on houses, printmaking everything, handmade knives, decorating food, cutesie broach making, really beautiful ceramics; all rough and natural on the outside and glazed on the inside and 'lets find it much pleasure in life' chalk lessons!
Kindergarten- After playing parachute games, and farmyard animals, singing english nursery rhymes, Kira kira, hikaru/Twinkle, twinkle little star we made star stickers, then sticker charms for bracelets and headbands.
Experiments with book making for presentation of Exchange Zine- Carbon tracing paper hardback canvas book for making comments, B5 size japanese paper hardback book, A5 stapled paper book, Corrugated hardback book with holders
Shibori at Arimatsu- Traditional japanese craft of 'tie-dying' clothes. We walked around the old town seeing paintings using shibori technique and how they make the ruffles and dye the fabric.
Samurai demonstation with performances and parades and puppetry at Chukyo Keibajomae. We got stopped loads of times today so by people asking to have a picture of us, not with us, and there were some sly ones being taken, it was like that in China; i suppose they don't see many 'westerners'.
unfortunately this is headquarters as the internet is in a really dodgey place in our apartment. eek!
Millie, my exchange buddy old pal, has taken some great photos and videos of our time here in Japanland. check her out. www.milliepopovic.blogspot.com -shes a lovely printmaker too!
experiments with presentation of exchange zine...links, exchange, kinetic art, stickers, paper chains, mobiles, activity, engagement, light, transparency, money exchange, leaving a trace... more experiments to come (zine image courtesy of Tsuna on MCD Communication course)
