Curvy, spacy community centre, Onishi, Japan

The architecture of the spacey Onishi community centre seems to mimic the winding river of the valley that cradles the small town. It was a delight to find this large and modern complex in the centre of the small and friendly town about two hours north of Tokyo. Can you imagine hosting an event or exhibition here, or filming some scenes, or performing music or theater?Many large and small rooms are now seeking programming proposals. … >> read more

Onagawa artists’ residence, Japan

Photos from the small house that acted as the residence for 6 artists in the August 2013 edition of the Onagawa artist in residence program.

Taxis parked outside the train station.

Planes, trains, and automobiles: 24 hours of travel to Japan

Screens on the backs of seats in a dark airplane cabin.
Air Canada Flight 1, Toronto to Tokyo direct. They did a good job simulating an overnight flight. This is what it looked like for most of the 13 hours.

We left home at 11:30 am on Monday, 19 August 2013, about a half hour later than ideal. We rolled our bags to the Christie metro station, a short 10 minute walk. From Kiplling Station we took the airport express bus to Pearson International Airport – total cost of $3 each and travel time of 40 minutes. Pretty much how long a cab would take, and about $40 cheaper. Exactly what public transit should be. The rest of the trip had much more epic proportions.

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A little Onagawa girl holds a puppet she made in Marc's workshop.

Onagawa children assemble Yuuki Flower textile sculpture, Japan

Children living at the temporary housing complex in Okinawa, Japan, assemble the Yuuki Flower sculpture from its components for display in the community market and exhibition space. Daisuke Takeya (blond hair) and Chie Kajiwara (white t-shirt), the curators of the Field Trip Project, assist. It feels fantastic to see so much enthusiasm and interaction with our sculpture. It’s exactly the kind of experience that the art was designed to hopefully generate.

Field Trip Project :)

Official website of the Field Trip Project launches

Field Trip Project art lined up in a shipping yard, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan 2012.
Field Trip Project art lined up in a shipping yard, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan 2012.
Field Trip Project Logo
Visit the official website.

The official website for the Field Trip Project launched today, with tons of photos and information about past and upcoming exhibition venues. I love this project as it aligns with so many of my and Marc’s beliefs of the role and potential of art in the world.

From the Field Trip Project About page:

Field Trip Project is a mobile/ participatory/ interactive art exhibition installed within Japanese elementary school backpacks. Traveling to various locations, it connects people and bridges communities.

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Field Trip Project at the Echigo Tsumari Triennale

Field Trip Project at the Echigo Tsumari Triennale

Field Trip Project at the Echigo Tsumari Triennale
The Yuuki Flower (first on the left) and other backpacks from the Field Trip Project at the Echigo Tsumari Triennale, Iwama Satoshi’s area, Japan.

The Field Trip Project was installed in the Echigo-Tsumari Triennial 2012 on 26 August. This is the largest international art exhibition in the world and this year it runs from 29 July to 18 September 2012.

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