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Ai Weiwei, Map of China, 2004, Tieli wood from dismantled temples of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), h. 51cm, 200cm, © FAKE Studio. |
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Ai Weiwei, Dropping a Han Dynasty Urn, 1995, Triptych, b/w-prints, © FAKE Studio. |
Ai Weiwei, Bowl of Pearls, 2006, porcelain, freshwater pearls, each h. 43cm, x 100cm, © FAKE Studio.
Ai Weiwei, Cubic Meter Tables, 2006, huali wood 13 pieces, each, 100 x 100 x 100cm, © FAKE Studio.
Ai Weiwei, Table with Three Legs, 2006, Table from the late Ming or early Qing Dynasty (1368-1911), 116 x 155.5 x 155.5cm, © FAKE Studio.
Ai Weiwei, Ton of Tea, 2006, 1 ton compressed Tea, 100 x 100 x 100cm, © FAKE Studio.
Ai Weiwei, Coca Cola Vase, 1997, vase from the Tang Dynasty (618-907) and paint, 24cm x 18cm, © FAKE Studio. |
Mori Art Museum Ai Weiwei, whose activities cover a wide range of genres, from art and architecture to design and publishing, has an international reputation cemented by a series of highly acclaimed projects over the last few years, including Fairytale, his contribution to Documenta 12 in 2007 for which he brought 1,001 Chinese people to Europe, as well as his collaboration with architects Herzog & de Meuron on the “Bird's Nest” Olympic Stadium for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Up until now, Ai's work has been focused on the connections between art, culture, and society, and on the role of the individual within society. In recent years, he has moved away from the architectural projects, a major part of his practice since 1999, and adopted looser parameters that allowed him to explore more freely timeless themes such as culture, history, politics and tradition. This exhibition shows 26 works made since the 1990s including six new works, making it one of the largest solo shows for the artist. The subtitle, According to What? comes from a painting by Jasper Johns, the artist whose work was the catalyst for Ai's entry into the contemporary art world. It hints at one of the exhibition's goals: to explore the connections between Ai’s work and its artistic, cultural and historical backgrounds. The exhibits are varied, ranging from sculptures to photographs, video and site specific installations. They are organized into three sections: “Fundamental Forms and Volumes,” “Structure and Craftsmanship” and “Reforming and Inheriting Tradition.” In this way, the fundamental approach and motivations that unite Ai's myriad creative activities are brought into relief. In the first section, Fundamental Forms and Volumes, exhibits include a series of cubic and polyhedral forms reminiscent of minimal art and a new installation consisting of blocks of Chinese tea. A video showing the city of Beijing as though closed-circuit television cameras is also exhibited. In Structure and Craftsmanship work from the simple, astoundingly minutely carved Maps series, the Furniture series made since 1997 and an object, called Moon Chest, which straddles art, architecture and design, are exhibited. The last section, Reforming and Inheriting Tradition, includes works based on ceramics from the Neolithic period and Han and Tang Dynasties and an installation consisting of reassembled parts from Qing Dynasty architecture. The exhibition also includes a documentary video (2 hrs 30 mins) of Fairytale, the Documenta 12 project, a “social sculpture,” and a new version of Chandelier and Snake Ceiling. Despite being based in a country experiencing one of the most rapid periods of economic and social change ever, Ai Weiwei manages in his artworks to link the past with the present and the individual with the world. Ai WeiWei was born in Beijing in 1957 as the son of Ai Qing, one of modern China’s most renowned poets. He entered the Beijing Film Academy in 1978. In 1979 and in 1980, Ai took part in exhibitions as a member of “Xingxing (The Stars),” the first avant-garde group in China after the Cultural Revolution. Soon afterwards in 1981, Ai moved to New York, where he spent 12 years until his return to China in 1993. The influence of American contemporary art and European modernism such as the Dada movement and Duchamp is evident in his work of the 80s. After his return to China, alongside his work in publishing, Ai became involved in the founding of the China Art Archive & Warehouse (CAAW) as artistic director, and has since continued to support emerging young Chinese artists. In 2000 Ai curated the Fuck Off exhibition in Shanghai. The extreme works featured in Fuck Off were hugely controversial, yet the exhibition itself has become legendary. Meanwhile, Ai’s design for his home and studio in 1999 became a catalyst for the artist to further extend his creative activity to include architectural designing, and Ai has been nvolved in over 50 architectural projects within the six to seven years that followed. He designed contemporary art galleries and studio units in the vicinity of his residence in Caochangdi, an area which has been attracting increasing attention as the second art zone after 798 Art Zone in Dashanzi. |
Ai Weiwei, Fairytale, Random selection of 1001 participating Chinese, Courtesy People's Architecture (www. |
Ai Weiwei, Colored Vases, 2006, neolithic vases (5000-3000 BC) and paint, installation size: 50 x 200 cm, in different sizes H ca. 9 -31 cm. |
Ai Weiwei, Forever, Bicycles, 2003, 42 bicycles, h. 275cm x 450cm, © FAKE Studio. |
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Portrait of Kosho Ito. |
Kosho Ito, Eros of Alumina (White Solidities are...), 1984, Courtesy: Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, Photo: Yoshitaka Uchida.
Kosho Ito, Folds of Clay – Blue Freeze, 2007, Courtesy: Artist, Photo: Yoshitaka Uchida.
Kosho Ito, Feldspar Terrain No.2 (Imported Soil Series), 2000, Courtesy: Artist, Photo: Tadasu Yamamoto.
Kosho Ito, Kino-Niku, Tsuchi-no-Ha II, 1993, Courtesy: Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art, Photo: Yoshitaka Uchida. |
Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo Kosho Ito Works 1974-2009 – Order and Chaos is a major retrospective exhibition of the work of Kosho Ito (1932- ), an artist who uses clay to create large-scale installations. Born in the family of the metal engraving of Kanazawa, Ito got his start in the world of traditional ceramics but thereafter embarked into experimental works that questioned established art concepts. He has since been active in the contemporary art field earning him international accolade. In 1978, he represented Japan at the Triennale-India, where he was awarded the Gold Medal and also participated in the Venice Biennale as the Japanese representative in 1984. Ito uses various types of clay in his works. They range from porcelain clay called Kaolin, to a more reddish-clay that contains substantial amount of iron as well as a type that can be found in Kasama, Ibaraki prefecture, where he now lives. Depending on the characteristics of the clay, the resulting effect differs in kaleidoscopic ways. His innovative techniques include freezing of the clay and slicing up of soft clay with a cord and deforming it spontaneously by hand. Ito pays close attention to the various transformations of the medium. An artificial intermediate process is kept to a minimum as he ultimately valued the delicate nuances of the clay and consciously focused on the fundamental nature of the medium. Cracks and ruffles that appear on the surface of Ito’s works create an illusion to the viewer as if they are alive-so vibrant and full of life. Consequently, his creation is born under a dialogue one has with nature and its organic ways. The exhibition is based upon Ito’s own collection, together with representative works from each period and series of his life as an artist. The exhibition gives a comprehensive prologue to Kosho Ito’s oeuvre. In addition to works covering almost 35 years, there will be new works created specifically for this exhibition. These works evolve a relationship between the exhibition space and his works, echoing a mutual relevance and dynamic correlation with the site. Furthermore, his renowned installations will be shown under a new light, as he personally exhibits the works himself. Ito’s works are usually composed by mounting of infinite number of tiny units. By the artist’s own hands, these units are laid, intentionally, on the exhibition floor. These units may perhaps appear very similar almost to the point that they appear identical, yet none of these single units are the same. The countless formal differences in shapes, forms and color tones of these individual units give an impression of the effervescent movement of living organisms. These dynamic installations will, undoubtedly, reveal unlimited possibilities of explorations of nature, order and chaos before us. The works of Kosho Ito can be found in numerous public collections, including Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art, Iwaki City Art Museum, Ibaraki Ceramic Art Museum, The National Museum of Art, Osaka, The Setagaya Art Museum, Takamatsu City Museum of Art, The Museum of Modern Art, Toyama, Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art, France National Museum of Sevres Ceramics, Museum, Taipei Fine Arts Museum, and National Museum of Modern India. Kosho Ito (b.1932) is renowned in Japan as an experimental artist who uses clay to create large-scale organic installations, using firing techniques developed for the ceramic industry. Since 1970 he has been making installations using endless variations of curved and textured shapes, which often resemble primary life forms like cocoons and seeds, and take on a different aspect when placed in a particular location. He is creating two site specific installations especially for Tate St Ives using the 55’ long curved ceramic showcase and the gallery courtyard. Ito lives near the town of Mashiko, where a strong link has developed with St Ives through the friendship between the potters Bernard Leach and Shoji Hamada. Ito’s experimental approach offers an important counterpoint to the traditions established by Leach and Hamada. Although his work is held in high regard by museums and public collections in Japan, this is the first time his work will be seen in Britain. |
Kosho Ito, Kino-Niku, Tsuchi-no-Ha, 1991, Courtesy: Takamatsu City Museum of Art, Photo: Yoshitaka Uchida. |
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Lady Maya and three attendants, Asuka Period, 7th century. |
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Seated Bodhisattva with one leg pendent, Gilt bronze, Three Kingdoms period, 7th century, Gift of The Ogura Foundation.
Head of Buddha from Khotan, Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region, China, 3rd-4th century. |
Tokyo National Museum The Path of Buddha traces the development of Buddhist statues from Gandhara (Ancient India), China, the Korean Peninsula, and Japan to provide insights about how Buddhist beliefs and statues developed in each region. Buddhism is a religion based on the teachings, known as dharma, of Prince Siddhartha Gautama, who lived in India around the 5th century B.C. He attained "Enlightenment" and became Sakyamuni Buddha when he was 35, and spent the rest of his life teaching his insights to others. After his death, his followers continued to practice and spread his teachings. Following his cremation, the Buddha's ashes and relics, known as sarira, were deposited in stupas, originally mound-like structures. Buddhist art developed when stupas were decorated with reliefs that depicted stories of Buddha and other designs. Initially, Buddha was not presented as a human figure. This changed around the 1st century A.D. and Buddhists began to worship statues. Over time, Buddhism spread to other areas, where statues were crafted and worshipped in various forms. Siddhartha Gautama (Sanskrit; Pali: Siddhattha Gotama) was a spiritual teacher from ancient India and the founder of Buddhism. He is generally recognized by Buddhists as the Supreme Buddha (Sambuddha) of our age. The time of his birth and death are uncertain: most early 20th-century historians date his lifetime from circa 563 BCE to 483 BCE; more recently, however, at a specialist symposium on this question, the majority of those scholars who presented definite opinions gave dates within 20 years either side of 400 BCE for the Buddha's death, with others supporting earlier or later dates. Gautama, also known as kyamuni Pli or Shakyamuni (“sage of the Shakyas”), is the key figure in Buddhism, and accounts of his life, discourses, and monastic rules were said to have been summarized after his death and memorized by the sangha. Passed down by oral tradition, the Tripitaka, the collection of teachings attributed to Gautama by the Theravada, was committed to writing about 400 years later. The prime sources of information regarding Siddhartha Gautama's life are the Buddhist texts. The Buddha and his monks spent four months each year discussing and rehearsing his teachings, and after his death his monks set about preserving them. A council was held shortly after his death, and another was held a century later. At these councils the monks attempted to establish and authenticate the extant accounts of the life and teachings of the Buddha following systematic rules. They divided the teachings into distinct but overlapping bodies of material, and assigned specific monks to preserve each one. This was done orally until three generations after the Buddha's death, when they were recorded. By this point, the monks had added or altered some material themselves, in particular magnifying the figure of the Buddha. The ancient Indians were not concerned with chronologies, being far more focused on philosophy. The Buddhist texts reflect this tendency, and we have a much clearer picture of what the Buddha thought than of the dates of the events in his life. These texts contain descriptions of the culture and daily life of ancient India which can be corroborated from the Jain scriptures, and make the Buddha's time the earliest period in Indian history for which substantial accounts exist. The following is a summary of what is found in these texts. |
Kengu-kyo Sutra (Buddhist scripture), Known as Ojomu, Attributed to the emperor Shomu, Nara Period, 8th century. |
