My Reality: Contemporary Art and the Culture of Japanese Animation
4/12/2003 - 6/15/2003
An international exhibition of 31 works by 18 artists from South Korea, Japan, the Netherlands, Greece, Great Britain, and the United States investigates the influence of Japanese animation (animé) on the art of today. Just as American comic books became popular among Japanese youth after World War II, in the past two decades Japanese animé figures such as DOB and Hello Kitty have achieved almost cult status. The exhibition features the fantastic sci-fi creatures, cyborgs, robots, and karaoke work of important contemporary artists such as Takashi Murakami, Mika Kato, Paul McCarthy, and Miltos Manetas working in photography, painting, sculpture, and video. This exhibition originated at the Des Moines Art Center, curated by Jeff Fleming, senior curator, and Susan Lubowsky Talbott, director. The traveling exhibition is organized and circulated by Independent Curators International (ICI), New York. The Mondriaan Foundation, Amsterdam, and the Consulate General of the Netherlands in New York provided additional funding for the traveling exhibition. Local presentation has been generously sponsored by the Neuberger Berman Foundation. Locally sponsored in part by the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and the Florida Arts Council, and the National Endowment for the Arts.
West Palm Beach, FL - My Reality: Contemporary Art and the Culture of Japanese Animation, an exhibition that investigates the impact of Japanese animation, commonly called anime, on contemporary art in Asian countries and in the West opens at the Norton Museum of Art on April 12 and runs through June 15, 2003. My Reality presents some 30 works by 18 artists from the East and the West revealing their influence on each other through their shared interest in anime. Admission to the exhibition costs $10 for adults and includes entry to the Museum's permanent collections. For tickets call 1-866-468-7630 or visit www.norton.org.
My Reality presents the work of Japanese artists Taro Chiezo, Mariko Mori, Mr. (Masakatu Iwamoto), Takashi Murakami, Yoshitomo Nara, Momoyo Torimitsu, and Kenji Yanobe, and the Korean artist Lee Bul. These artists merge their primary influences, including Andy Warhol, Disney and Jeff Koons, with traditional art forms, such as Japanese wood block printing. The Western artists in the exhibition, including Matthew Benedict, James Esber, Micha Klein, Paul McCarthy, Richard Patterson, Tom Sachs, and Charlie White, share similar concerns and influences with their Asian counterparts. As a whole, the work in the show explores the myriad thematic and visual conventions found in anime. These include concepts such as futuristic technology, Cyborgs, fantastical creatures, and post-apocalyptic landscapes, as well as more universal themes, such as gender roles, consumerism, and pop culture.
Dr. Roger Ward, Chairman, Curatorial Department comments, "We intend for My Reality to attract attention from younger visitors who are familiar with popular images of anime through television as well as visitors interested in the influence of anime on Western, and Asian art."
Initially organized by the Des Moines Art Center, My Reality is co-curated by Jeff Fleming, senior curator and Susan Lubowsky Talbott, director. The traveling tour is organized by Independent Curators International, NY a non-profit organization dedicated to contemporary art.
The contemporary Japanese popular culture manifested in anime, comic books (manga), music, geek culture (otaku), the club scene, advertising and fashion presents a unique approach to modern life. It is a survival strategy, finding authoritative voice in social critique and reflection. Yet many of its sources lie in forms of Western entertainment, such as the animated films produced by Disney and Warner Brothers, and it embodies a sense of playfulness. In fact, play and fantasy echo throughout Japanese youth culture, which has embraced them as a manifesto and exported them to the world.
This exhibition explores the notion of the invented communal or personal reality that functions as an avenue of escape from contemporary social circumstances. For both the Eastern and the Western artists participating in the exhibition, escape derives from this reverie, whether through an atomic car designed to survive a nuclear holocaust or a more encompassing retreat into history, tradition, or popular culture.
Admission to the exhibition costs $10 for adults and includes entry to the Museum's permanent collections. For tickets call 1-866-468-7630