ART CITIES:Tokyo-Tomoko Shioyasu

 “Cosmic Perspective”, is the title of the exchibition by Tomoko Shioyasu. Outlining images from close observation in natural matters such as water, bubbles and organic cells, Shioyasu applies a meticulous transposition of these patterns to a scroll of synthetic paper. The paper is cut, carved and perforated using a knife and soldering tools and in rays of light, projects a stark contrast of light and shadow, which articulates yin-yang flows of particles in the air.

By Efi Michalarou
Photo: Scai The Bathhouse Gallery Archive

Japanese artist Tomoko Shioyasu was born in Osaka in 1981, creates in the Gallery space, meticulously cut by hand from enormous sheets of paper using utility knives and soldering irons and then there is the pain of repetition, lots and lots of repetition. She quotes achieving a Zen-like state during the process, pursuing what she calls “the truth in the universe”. Her work evokes some of nature’s most complex creations: the organic patterns of cells, the flow of water, and the forces of wind. How these are hung without tearing seems nearly impossible. Her techniques include extensive research trips that introduced her to ivory carving in Guangdong, China, paper marbling in Florence. In this exhibition entitled “Cosmic Perspectives”, Shioyasu delves into shapes of spheres, circles and swirls that are common and universal in the world of nature and traditional crafts. The micro vision of atomic particles here, may also sublimate a macro vision of the galaxy’s foam structure. An important role for the artist, is playing the harmony in the rhythm of nature, as it repeats over time. The little cuts accumulate to create works on a very large scale, producing installations which take in the flow of air and light of their location, becoming one with it so that the exhibition space becomes an abstraction of nature itself, and the installation becomes a sign of nature with presence and depth.

Info: Cosmic Perspective, Scai The Bathhouse, Kashiwayu-Ato, 6-1-23 Yanaka, Taito-ku, Tokyo, Duration: 16/1-21/2/15, Days & Hours: Tue-Fri: 12:00-18:00, www.scaithebathhouse.com