After my office work at youkobo, I print out, cut and construct Gaku's weekly Art Manga. The dialogue with her was recalled.
Gaku was a residency artist more than 10 years ago at Youkobo. She had moved to NY to have her life there. I felt so lucky to met with her early this year at youkobo when she was making her brief return to Japan. Once you are out of a community that you are used to and was welcomed, you become nothing again. You build from Zero. It is wonderful opportunity to re-evaluate your sense of value, what you think as normal. What is great about her is that her will and commitment in art are so strong that they stay clear in herself, and even get stronger when there are many questions.
Her question to the idea of putting an exhibition in a gallery as an 'normal' way to present artworks, led her to invent another way to communicate with the world through her work. She said, 'I want to focus on making works sincerely. That is most important at the moment. I become interested in the project as it focuses on artist's making works for the sake of making art, and it does value the process of making, not the purpose of making, such as towards an exhibition in the gallery. Utako is not galleryist nor curator. She is an artist, and to question about artists running space, such as Youkobo gallery, that assist artist making, experiment. That makes valuable for me to be part of.
The local artist, the residency artsit, the visitors joined to cut and make Gaku's work at the participation section next to the entrance. Wide opened glass door might have created easy for people to walk in to find out about the happening. Thank you very much for those who helped and enjoyed. It was nice and hearty to have people showing their kindness, especially this week, youkobo experienced farewell to our dearest dog, KORO chan. Strangely, Gaku sent work with the dog charactor. Such a serendipity!
