Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on April 2010 Artist File, the annual group show of “currently active artists” at the National Art Center Tokyo, is always interesting. But it’s important to remember that the selections are made by a committee of curators on the public payroll, keen to show just how vital they are. This creates […]
Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on April 2010
Courtesy of the National Art Center Tokyo
Artist File, the annual group show of “currently active artists” at the National Art Center Tokyo, is always interesting. But it’s important to remember that the selections are made by a committee of curators on the public payroll, keen to show just how vital they are. This creates an unfortunate tendency to give visitors a hard time, with art that “destroys preconceptions” or “unseats the viewer’s customary way of seeing and thinking.” Apparently, curators feel most useful when the punters are confused. This explains why the current show includes pointless art like Kaoru Minamino’s clay works that mimic factory-produced metal and Naoyu Fukuda’s category-defying but dreary book art. Yet approached with an open mind, the show is also capable of providing delights, such as Toru Kuwakubo’s rich, lurid canvases and Chisato Saito’s charming pictures in which bubbles capture a background image, just like hundreds of tiny eyes.
National Art Center Tokyo, until May 5. See exhibition listings (Akasaka/Roppongi) for details.
Metropolis
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