takayuki matsuo
Modernology - natural artifacts 2008-2021NY -
Exhibition dates: August 15 - September 30, 2021
Venue: Anaba Project, Bethesda, WD,
For this exhibition, I decided to show what I have collected over the past 10 years (2008-2016/2019-2021) that I feel particularly connected to. So the theme of the exhibition is "how artwork should be placed in relation to this room".
At first, I started by cleaning and examining the entire room. By taking the time to observe, I noticed a variety of characteristics of the room, such as the round window, electrical switches, plumbing, floor features, multiple outlets, etc. and then I tried to figure out how should I place the works in relation to the characteristics of room. After few days, while I tried out various arrangements, I realized that I was only thinking about placing works, so, I became conscious of the necessity to reduce or not place things, which were not necessary.
When the objects unrelated to the location are exhibited, I wondered if the meaning of exhibit the work in the location could be created by being aware of the features of the location, rather than ignoring them as a hindrance. This is my attempt to complete my intention of turning attention to things that are essentially useless to the world.
Modernology - restoration -
Exhibition dates: March 3 - 30, 2020
Venue: Ace Hotel New York Gallery ( https://www.acehotel.com/newyork/ )
Organizer: Residency Unlimited ( https://www.residencyunlimited.org )
Residency Unlimited (RU) is pleased to present a solo exhibition of the work of RU alumnus Takayuki Matsuo at Ace Hotel New York. Modernology: Restoration presents objects found in the vicinity of Ace Hotel New York together with works from Takayuki Matsuo’s Project Ephemeral: #3 RESTORATION(2019), an ongoing archive of found urban sculpture.
Project Ephemeral is a series of exhibitions held in locations such as abandoned buildings, streets, roadsides and vacant lots.
Inspired by “modernology,” a field of study proposed by Japanese folklore scholar Wajiro Kon in 1927, Matsuo’s examination of found objects is informed by a combination of archaeological research methods, criminal investigation and museum conservation techniques, geographic coordinate systems, and historical and site research.
Central to Matsuo’s practice is the Japanese aesthetic sensibility of wabi-sabi and the concept of “the usefulness of the useless” in the writings of the ancient Chinese philosopher Chuang Tzu. The wabi-sabi respect of transience and imperfection is informed by Buddhist teaching, in particular the three marks of existence: impermanence, suffering, and emptiness.
Honoring the beauty inherent in an aesthetic that values imperfection and impermanence and following a set of self-assigned rules and guiding principles, Matsuo processes each found object through a four-tiered treatment of investigation, cleaning, restoration, and preservation in order to archive “the modest thing that is already in there.”
Written by Rachel Gugelberger
Modest Expressionism 水 と 木 と 布 | Water / Wood / Cloth
Hanae Utamura water / video art /
Takayuki Matsuo wood / found object /
Mami Kosemura cloth / photography /
The exhibition ”Modest Expressionism" aims to put forward a new value to the present age by daring to focus on something that is inconspicuous, modest, and difficult to understand.
In recent years, the globalization of the economy and the generalization of the Internet have made it possible for everyone to express themselves and obtain information easily.
Therefore, information increased explosively, and each piece of information was easily accessible and therefore seemingly attractive.
However, in this process we lose the faculty to properly look, experience and think about things deeply.
This raises questions such as:
Are we being manipulated by uncertain information?
What is our level of dependence to general trends ?
In order to "understand" things deeply, it takes a lot of time.
To see the essence of things that are subtle and difficult
by putting ourselves in a slow time,
by re-recognizing the old knowledge,
by being conscious of usual things,
by being conscious of immutable things (types),
and by repeating the same action.
This exhibition brings together three artists who are looking at these questions:
Investigation
Exhibition dates: Sunday, June 30, 2019
Hours: 1-4pm
Location: Gowanus, Around 6th st. and 2nd Av. Brooklyn
https://goo.gl/maps/zLZBHCFh8uPwr9v98
* This exhibition will be held outdoor.
INVESTIGATION – Project Ephemeral, the first of four monthly interventions led by the RU artist Takayuki Matsuo in outdoor spaces. On June 30, from 1- 4 pm Matsuo held an exhibition that is a recorded section of daily life by drawing a white line on a disappearing road sign - White Line -, by documenting found objects on site - Natural Artifacts -, and examining color of painted wall - Color Chart -. Each proceeding is ruled by this question: “How can I record information of things that can be recognized and restored by future generations or others?"
Project Ephemeral is a series of four one-day exhibitions held between June and September 2019 in non white cube locations such as abandoned buildings, streets of New York, roadsides and vacant lots. Following a set of self-assigned rules, Matsuo investigates, cleans, restores, preserves and archives "the modest thing that is already in there". Matsuo does not claim these actions as artistic ones but as every day gestures that viewers who happen to be on the spot will interpret as a mirage or a total solar eclipse.
written by Nathalie Angles, Executive Director of Residency Unlimited
Cleaning
Investigation
Cleaning
Exhibition dates: Wednesday, July 31, 2019
Hours: 4 - 7 pm
Location: Gowanus, Under the Gowanus Expressway
Map: Click here for Google Map Directions
* This exhibition will be held outdoor.
CLEANING – Project Ephemeral, the second of four monthly interventions led by the RU artist Takayuki Matsuo in outdoor spaces.
What is considered beautiful or dirty depends on individual subjectivity and on Wednesday, July 31, Matsuo undertakes deliberate actions of "cleaning" that examine those very notions. Whether peeling paint from a discarded bicycle frame or sweeping up dirt from the abandoned site, each action he chooses will be ruled by this question: "What can we see by returning something to its original state?".
#2, CLEANING is part of Project Ephemeral, a series of four one-day exhibitions held between June and September 2019 in non-white cube locations such as abandoned buildings, streets of New York, roadsides and vacant lots. Following a set of self-assigned rules, Matsuo investigates, cleans, restores, preserves, and archives "the modest thing that is already in there". Matsuo does not claim these actions as artistic ones but as every day gestures that viewers who happen to be on the spot will interpret as a mirage or a total solar eclipse.
Restoration
Exhibition dates: Thursday, Aug 29, 2019
Hours: 1-4pm
Location: Morgan Ave, Bushwick, On a discontinued railroad,
https://goo.gl/maps/1iMqLpCrDmcPBhUp8
* This exhibition will be held outdoor.
RESTORATION – Project Ephemeral, the third of four monthly interventions led by the RU artist Takayuki Matsuo in outdoor spaces.
On August 29, from 1-4 pm Takayuki Matsuo held an exhibition that invites viewers to see a restored section of daily life. Using objects and materials that he found at the exhibition site, he worked to "restore" these items and now re-presents them to us in the same space that they were discovered. By assembling disjointed items he compensated for the missing original parts by pairing them with new materials. Matsuo envisions this process of restoration as a way of bringing the objects back to their original form rather than aiming to restore the original function of the objects.
Project Ephemeral is a series of four one-day exhibitions held between June and September 2019 in nonwhite cube locations such as abandoned buildings, streets of New York, roadsides and vacant lots. Following a set of self-assigned rules, Matsuo investigates, cleans, restores, preserves and archives "the modest thing that is already in there". Matsuo does not claim these actions as artistic ones but as every day gestures that viewers who happen to be on the spot will interpret as a mirage or a total solar eclipse.
Preservation
Exhibition dates: Monday, Sep 30, 2019
Hours: 1-4pm
Location: 210 46th street #210, Brooklyn, NY
https://goo.gl/maps/xBb9UYbnFPeMU57R9
On September 30th, from 1-4 pm Takayuki Matsuo will hold an exhibition that invites viewers to see a preserved section of daily life.
The past three exhibitions were held in outdoor locations and the for this final presentation Matsuo invited viewers into his studio where he will present objects from previous exhibitions alongside objects that he found during the residency period. Matsuo worked to "preserve" the items on display by using conservation materials and enacting actions that are typically used for the preservation of artwork and valuables with each action ruled by this question: “What is functional and beautiful preservation?”
#4, PRESERVATION is part of Project Ephemeral, a series of four one-day exhibitions held between June and September 2019 in non-white cube locations such as abandoned buildings, streets of New York, roadsides and vacant lots. Following a set of self-assigned rules, Matsuo investigates, cleans, restores, preserves, and archives "the modest thing that is already in there". Matsuo does not claim these actions as artistic ones but as every day gestures that viewers who happen to be on the spot will interpret as a mirage or a total solar eclipse.
