PRESS RELEASE

2024.7.31

WHAT MUSEUM to Hold Exhibition, Akihito Okunaka “Synesthesia –Crossing the senses with art–” from October 4th (Fri), 2024

Exhibiting a maximum 12-meter diameter experiential balloon sculpture

The Collectors’ Museum of Contemporary Art, WHAT MUSEUM, operated by Warehouse TERRADA, will hold an exhibition titled Akihito Okunaka “Synesthesia –Crossing the senses with art–” from October 4th (Fri), 2024 to March 16th (Sun), 2025. It will feature balloon-like soft sculptures by artist Akihito Okunaka.

Okunaka has created large-scale works themed around “air, water, and light,” generating experiences that stir the senses of viewers.

The exhibition title Synesthesia refers to the rich sensory experience where one sense is simultaneously perceived by additional senses. Okunaka has uniquely interpreted this phenomenon and incorporated it into his works. Based on the idea that the act of sensing can bridge connections between nature, society, and people, his works transform from traditional forms to something more organic.

The highlight of this exhibition will be a balloon-like installation piece with a maximum diameter of 12 meters. Created specifically for this exhibition, it will expand to completely fill the exhibition space and change colors. Inside the piece is a large water pillow. By using the intangible elements of air, water, and light, it evokes and resonates with viewers’ senses. This sensorial experience allows the viewers to feel a “connection” with others that transcends physical sensations.

Okunaka has also been influenced by the philosopher Bruno Latour, a leading figure in the field of sociology of science and technology. Okunaka’s background in education and sociology is reinforced by Latour’s philosophy on reevaluating the modern framework of dualism between nature and society. This exhibition presents some insights into the philosophical thought behind Okunaka’s work and the process of integrating it into his creations through exhibit materials and an interview video.

We will provide visitors with an opportunity to experience a “connection” with nature, society, and other people by touching, entering, and lying down inside the installation.

[Overview of the Exhibition]

Title: Akihito Okunaka “Synesthesia –Crossing the senses with art–”
Dates: October 4th (Fri), 2024 – March 16th (Sun), 2025
Venue: SPACE 2, 1st floor at WHAT MUSEUM (Warehouse TERRADA G Building 2-6-10 Higashi-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 140-0002)
Open Hours: Tuesday – Sunday, 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM (Admission until 5:00 PM)
Closed on: Mondays (but open when Monday is a public holiday, then closed the following Tuesday), and New Year’s holidays
Admission: Adults 1,500 yen / University or vocational college students 800 yen / Students under high school age Free
* Including the admission for the concurrent exhibition
* Advance reservation by online ticketing is available
* Re-entry ticket valid during the exhibition will be on sale
Exhibition Passport 2,500 yen (This exhibition and its concurrent exhibition are available)
Organizing: WHAT MUSEUM
Planning: WHAT MUSEUM
Cooperation: Yamashiro Culture Center, SUMIKASEKISUI FILM CO.,LTD., TERAOKA SEISAKUSHO CO., LTD. and HOLOGRAM SUPPLY CO., LTD.
URL: https://what.warehouseofart.org/en/exhibitions/synesthesia_en

[Exhibiting Artist: Akihito Okunaka]

Artist
Akihito Okunaka was born in 1981 in Kyoto Prefecture, where he is currently based. He is an artist, co-director of AOIoA, and head of the Experiential Art Course at the Yamashiro Cultural Center in Kizugawa City, Kyoto Prefecture.
After graduating from the Shizuoka University Department of Education, Okunaka specialized in art education for children and worked as an instructor at the Shizuoka Prefectural Museum of Art and at facilities for disabled people, teaching art and play. Okunaka then studied modern and contemporary theory before becoming an artist. He has received grants from the Nomura Foundation and the Asahi Shimbun Foundation, among others, and has dedicated himself to study in France, Korea, and China as a research fellow. With the theme of pursuing the dynamics of people, things, and matters through the lens of water, air, and light, he has held many workshops at regional art spaces around Japan and exhibited large-scale experiential artworks both domestically and internationally.

[Highlights]

– Experiential artwork
Visitors can touch, enter, and lie down inside the artwork, experiencing it with all five senses.

– Recognizing air, water, light, and relationships with others through the artwork
Air, water, light, and relationships with others have no solid form. Visitors can find these shapeless entities by experiencing the artwork and seeing its wavering form and surfaces in response to the movements of other visitors.

– An exhibition that welcomes visitors to explore the artist’s mind
The exhibition features books that inspired Okunaka, along with materials such as his sketches and scribbles, and an interview video filmed exclusively for this exhibition. It offers the chance to learn in-depth about the intention and process behind the work.

[Images of the exhibited work for illustration purposes]

All photos:
INTER-WORLD/SPHERE: Relation of Air, Water, Light and Us, 2022 ©️Akihito Okunaka

[Pre-workshop]

Event name: “Picha-picha: Let’s make a water pillow!”
Event details: Participants will create their own miniature version of the “water pillow”, featured inside the balloon sculpture in the exhibition. The miniature water pillows are free to take home after the event. By experiencing the creative process with the artist, participants can better understand the background and thoughts behind the exhibited work.
Date and time: September 15th (Sun), 2024: 1:30 – 3:30 PM
Instructor: Akihito Okunaka
Venue: WHAT MUSEUM (Warehouse TERRADA G Building 2-6-10 Higashi-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 140-0002)
Target Audience: Elementary school age and above. *Preschool children must be accompanied by a guardian.
Capacity: 12 people (* First-come basis)
Admission: 1,000 yen
Application: The details will be announced on the official website. (Online tickets will be on sale on August 6th (Tue).)
* Other events will be featured during the exhibition, with details to be announced progressively on the official website.

[Video Interviews with Exhibiting Artists]

Interviews with artists whose works are/were featured in the exhibition will be available in our WHAT ARTIST INTERVIEW series via the official WHAT MUSEUM YouTube channel. Interviews related to this exhibition will be released sequentially.
WHAT MUSEUM Official YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/WHATMUSEUM

 

[About WHAT MUSEUM]

WHAT MUSEUM opened in Tennoz, Tokyo in December 2020. The Museum’s core work is to make the precious works of art properties that collectors and artists have entrusted to us accessible to the public. We have used our unique insight as a warehousing company to explore the concept of what an art facility should be. The result is to open up the warehouse to offer the public a look at art that they would not ordinarily have the opportunity to see. The museum exhibits works by artists active in the contemporary art scene side-by-side with the thoughts of the collectors as well as the artists, offering an innovative space for the appreciation of art. The name of WHAT (WAREHOUSE OF ART TERRADA) implies the cultural value which is gleaming quietly in the warehouse, and the museum exhibits two- and three-dimensional works as well as architectural models, photographs, movies, literature and installations. We plan and exhibit these diversified arts and cultures in our individual style of a museum as a warehouse company in new and unique approaches.

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