Look who I saw in the Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennial that opened last weekend: Kidlat the Father, also known here as Tahimik-san. They certainly stood out, all 15 of them, in their bahags and Ifugao wear. Tatay and crew (including Kabu and Ruel) participated at the Triennale up in the mountains of Niigata, the only art festival spread out over 700 square kilometers, by building an Ifugao house in the rice paddies up there. He calls it his Love Letter to Japan.
Do not be deceived though about the mountain weather, it was incredibly hot. Sauna hot, humidity at 90%. It was not pleasant. But the scale of the festival was amazing. Over 250 artists from all over the world come and make work to leave in this mountain region whose population has gradually depleted since the war. Many homes are abandoned, and many rice fields have grown over. Every 3 years since 2000, thousands come to see these art installations in the homes that have been converted into exhibition spaces and participate in this one of a kind art show. The great thing about it is that it is very much community-based, and there seems to be an equality amongst artists. Something that the heavily commercial Venice Biennale seems to have lost. There, the galleries are front center with the artists in credit at the captions; here, that artists are identified by country, and medium of art.
Antony Gormley creates a permanent installation "Another Singularity" for an old vacant house.
Japanese artist makes outline cut outs in iron of all the living members of the village.
Boltanski and Kalman transform a school gymnasium into straw floor + electric fans + lightbulbs. The smell of the straw was sweet and happily overpowering. Nice when unexpecteds come out of work like that.
Bankart House. They house artists and make furniture. This year they made baths.
Trippy trip... there was a school that was down to 3 students from a high of thousands, they closed it. So Japanese cartoonist makes story book about these 3 students that centered on a ghost who fed on children's memories being hungry. Trip.
Then the Herb Man project. They planted it, self explanatory. Can you see the man? It was really muddy. Fun.
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