plaster, polystyrene form, coated by water proof medium Afmetingen
sizes: 130 x 130 x 110 cm
Ai’s work is based on a fictional narrative called ‘Pink Tsunami’, which references the devastating earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan in March 2011 and caused nearly 20,000 deaths.
Kinoko is a mushroom head-shaped character who descends from the sky carrying a bag full of the essence of life. Kinoko walks through the pink desert, places a rucksack on the ground and sits on the floor to rest. Bubbles begin to form on the surface of the bag, covering everything until suddenly they burst, bringing a new life, that had not existed in the old world.
‘Pink Tsunami’ has become its own kind of mythology, and like traditional mythology the story changes each time it is told. Ai does this by modifying, rearranging and repeating her drawings in different styles and materials to reference how stories change and evolve from storyteller to storyteller.
Ai Hashimoto is a Japanese artist who lives and works in The Hague, the Netherlands.
She has exhibited in various galleries and museums. Last year, for example, her graphic work was exhibited at Escher Museum and her art performance was shown on the Dutch National television programme.
The starting point for her work is always a story. A story that she creates herself and ritual theories play an important role. It is not surprising that she has a background as an anthropologist. She studied anthropology at the University of Leuven in Belgium and fine arts at the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague in the Netherlands. She incorporates her anthropological knowledge and interest into her artwork.
A destruction and a resilience of nature have been important themes in recent years. Through her art, she shows us a new, scenic world, more positive, peaceful and serene.
A major inspiration for one of Ai Hashimoto’s stories is the tsunami disaster in Japan. She developed the story about the character ‘Kinoko’, who develops new kinds of organisms and creates an unfamiliar landscape out of the barren desert. Kinoko is a mushroom-headed character who descends from the sky carrying a bag filled with the essence of life.
Prologue of the ‘Kinoko’ story;
After the Pink Tsunami disaster, everything was gone and covered with pink sand.
It was carrying a yellow bag full of the essence of life.
Kinoko was alone. It took the bag and put the bottom head into the ground.
It sat down in a relaxed pose for a while.
Small balls began to bubble on the surface of the bag and quickly covered everything. Suddenly all the balls burst and were absorbed into the pink desert.
Then new life began, like bamboo shoots after rain.
It seemed to be new life that did not exist in the previous world. Everything was covered with new life. The landscape is unfamiliar.
It was the beginning of a new era, for better or for worse.
You can find a short movie of the picture book I made as following link;
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or call Tadd Hartland on 07545 648918
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