Mono-ha: School of Things
dal 29/5/2001 al 22/7/2001
Segnalato da
29/5/2001
Mono-ha: School of Things
Kettle's Yard, Cambridge
First UK show of work by radical Japanese group, Mono-ha. Mono-ha, literally meaning 'school of things', is the name given to a group of artists who came to critical attention in Japan in the late 1960s. Emerging from the political activism and violent student protests that were then sweeping Tokyo, the artists launched a radical attack upon traditional assumptions about the work of art. Making use of such everyday 'things' as stones, glass, iron plates, ropes, oil clay, wood and earth, either alone or in combination, the works confound traditional artistic genres as much as they challenge the physical space of the viewer.
Kettle’s Yard is pleased to announce the first exhibition in Britain by
Mono-ha.
Mono-ha, literally meaning 'school of things', is the name given to a group of
artists who came to critical attention in Japan in the late 1960s. Emerging
from the political activism and violent student protests that were then
sweeping Tokyo, the artists launched a radical attack upon traditional
assumptions about the work of art.
Making use of such everyday 'things' as stones, glass, iron plates, ropes, oil
clay, wood and earth, either alone or in combination, the works confound
traditional artistic genres as much as they challenge the physical space of
the viewer.
Whilst Mono-ha's use of natural materials and their questioning of the status
of the art-work seem to share many affinities with contemporary movements in
the West, such as Minimalism and Arte Povera, on closer view, their work
constitutes a far more searching critique of Modernism. For this reason,
Mono-ha has been called Japan's first avant-garde art movement.
Despite the importance of these artists, the site-specific and ephemeral
nature of their work has meant that it has rarely been seen outside of Japan.
Kettle’s Yard has invited four of the six artists to make work in the gallery,
from the siting of 1 tonne of oil clay to an installation occupying over 40
cubic metres.
The exhibition has been timed to coincide with Tate Modern’s Arte Povera
retrospective.
Kettle's Yard
Cambridge - Castle Street
ph. 01223 352124 f. 01223 324377