Is there any materials you are interested in your everyday life?

It doesn’t matter so much for my creation. I don’t get an idea from materials.

The installation work “refract!” will be exhibited in CALM & PUNK GALLERY soon. Could you tell us why you titled the exhibition ‘refract’?

When I exhibit, I try to title to the exhibition and verbalize the concept to make myself clear what I am trying to do and what I am thinking at that time. After a while I have noticed that I recently used the word ‘refract’ repeatedly in the text I wrote. As a sort of the mirror, art might be a device to reflect people’s vision and thoughts. And when it reflects, there occurs diffused reflection, deformation and ‘refract’. And of course I have a desire to make works which would refract people’s vision and thoughts in some way. Compared to a word ‘reflection’, which is more familiar word in Japan, I felt something more materiality and roughness to the unfamiliar word ‘refract’. I like the word ‘refract’.

Could you tell us about the installation works for the exhibition? Could you also talk about the new animation release?

I will exhibit a new gigantic fluorescent-lamp-made chandelier as a main, mirror balls, paintings, installations and so forth. As for the animation I made a simple one, shooting frames of created objects and edited so that it’s not a usual animation you would expect.

GAS BOOK 25 YUICHI HIGASHIONNA

Could you talk about the artist book “GAS BOOK 25 YUICHI HIGASHIONNA” which will be released soon?

It is a (Japanese/English written) visual book introducing my works with respect to each motif, with my text.

Could you tell us what your plans in the future?

Since I have been exhibiting from the last half of the last year until present, I would like to concentrate in creating my works in this summer. And for the last half of this year will again continue to have exhibitions in New York, Nagoya and Paris.

Yuichi Higashionna Solo Exhibition “refract!”
Date: May 16th – June 5th, 2008
Open: 11:00 – 19:00
Place: CALM & PUNK GALLERY
Address: 1F Asai building, 1-15-15 Nishiazabu, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Tel: +81 (0)3 5775 0825
https://www.calmandpunk.com