Asia Society Presents First Solo Exhibition of Works by Yuken Teruya
Free Fish >–:► The Art of Yuken Teruya
February 20 - April 29, 2007
The Asia Society presents the first solo museum presentation of works by Yuken Teruya, a New York artist born in Okinawa, Japan. Free Fish >–:► The Art of Yuken Teruya (February 20-April 29, 2007) includes previously exhibited work as well as a newly commissioned installation inspired by a Ming Dynasty Chinese porcelain jar selected from Asia Society's Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection.
Teruya is a young star best known for his intricate cut-paper art. These and other works that have appeared in Greater New York 2005, PS1 Contemporary Art Center, New York; Art Circus: Jumping from the Ordinary, Yokohama 2005: International Triennale of Contemporary Art, Japan; and Which Way the Tomorrow Is?, Ota Fine Arts, Tokyo. Teruya manipulates salvaged, everyday objects in order to transform their traditional or expected meanings. In doing so, he reflects on issues that are central to contemporary society and culture such as the depletion of natural resources and growing consumerism. His works trace the link from nature to consumerism and grapple with the threats that problems sas globalization and moderation pose to localized cultural traditions.
In Free Fish, Teruya, in his own words, sought to "find the heart beat - the spirit that makes [traditional art objects] alive in our contemporary world." He takes the fish motif from the Ming Dynasty Chinese porcelain jar and applies it to a kimono by using a textile dying technique called bingata or "color stencil." Also included in the installation are stencils and poi, fragile scoops made of a thin wire frame and washi paper, which are used in a common festival game in Japan.
"By actively borrowing from both traditional and contemporary sources, Teruya gives inanimate objects a voice that imbues them with life," said Miwako Tezuka, Asia Society Assisstant Curator, who curated the exhibition in association with Yang Yingshi, Asia Society Museum Fellow.
Free Fish presents not only a new and unique way to enjoy the Rockefeller collection, but reveals the Society's ongoing commitment to fostering a more inclusive look at the artistic expression of Asian societies beyond the pre-modern and historical arts. This exhibition is part of an ongoing exhibition series in which contemporary artists are commissioned to create new works of art using a work of their choice from Asia Society's permanent collection as a source of inspiration.
Previous exhibitions in this series includes Bodhi Obfuscatus (Space-Baby) by U.S.-born Korean artist Michael Joo. In 2006, under the curatorial direction of Melissa Chiu, Director of the Asia Society Museum, Joo created an installation in which a 3rd-century Gandharan Buddha is surrounded by a halo made up of 48 high-tech surveillance cameras. Joo was awarded the grand prize at the 2006 Gwangju Biennale in Gwangju, South Korea, for an adaptation of this installation. Free Fish is made possible with generous support from Jill and Jay Bernstein, Glenn Fuhrman, Wayne and Shoshana Blank, Asia Society Contemporary Art Council, the Sheryl and Charles R. Kaye Endowment for Contemporary Art Exhibitions, and the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Other Exhibitions on View at the Asia Society
GLASS, GILDING, AND GRAND DESIGN: ART OF SASANIAN IRAN (224-642)
February 14 - May 20, 2007
Approximately 75 works from European and American collections showing the splendor of court arts from this vast empire. Organized by the City of Paris, Musée Cernuschi and Paris Musées in association with Asia Society. Curated by Françoise Demange, Musée du Louvre. Curatorial consultants, Prudence O. Harper and Michael Chagnon.
COLLECTORS' CHOICE
February 27 - August 26, 2007
Approximately fifty extraordinary works of sculpture, ceramic, and painting from South, Southeast, and East Asia and the Himalayas, which range in date from the second to the eighteenth century from thirteen New York private collectors of Asian art. Organized by Asia Society. Curated by Adriana Proser and John H. Foster, Curator of Traditional Asian Art at Asia Society, in association with Kristy Phillips, Asia Society Museum Fellow.
About the Asia Society
Asia Society is the leading global organization working to strengthen relationships and promote understanding among the people, leaders, and institutions of Asia and the United States. We seek to enhance dialogue, encourage creative expression, and generate new ideas across the fields of policy, business, education, arts, and culture. Founded in 1956, Asia Society is a nonpartisan, nonprofit educational institution with offices in Hong Kong, Houston, Los Angeles, Manila, Melbourne, Mumbai, New York, San Francisco, Shanghai, and Washington, D.C.
Asia Society and Museum
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Contact: Jennifer Suh or Elaine Merguerian (212) 327-9271