A TABLE OF UTOPIA

Curated by Heya

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​Artists  

Natsuki Kuroda

Kentaro Shimoyama

Fumiyo Suzaki

Takahiko Kanemaki

Makiho Amemiya

Gaku Inoue

Yui Kiyohara

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Utopia proposed an alternative to the capitalist community. It was a place of equality, cleanliness, and crime-free perfection. Tama New Town, planned in Japan to compensate for the postwar housing shortage, was also designed to be a utopia. Spacious parks were designed to be accessible to residents, kitchens were made of stainless steel, and streets were designed so that people could walk without worrying about cars.

 

However, at the start of the project, Tama New Town was facing many local and social issues, such as a lack of cultural facilities and places to raise children, in addition to a lack of infrastructure such as stations. Men went to work during the day and women were left behind. The women created a place around the table in Newtown, supplemented each other's lack of infrastructure, and solved various problems through community. Their activities to fill the lack of utopia created another utopia, so to speak.

 

How can a utopia exist today? In this exhibition, artists and researchers will look at Tama New Town and create a space for sharing.

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Artists Profiles

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Natsuki KURODA

 

Born 1988 in Kanagawa Prefecture.

2011 BA in Policy Studies, The Department of Cross-Cultural Studies, The Faculty of Policy Studies, Chuo University. 

2013 Received the Grand Prize in the 8th 1_WALL Photography Competition in 2013.

 

Fumiyo SUZAKI

 

Architectural historian. Associate professor in the faculty of architecture and building engineering at Kanagawa University, and Member of the Institute for the Study of Japanese Folk Culture. History of modern architecture and housing. EU & JP Government-scholarship AUSMIP foreign students, Doctoral Dissertation Award of Japan Society of Lifology, JSPS Research Fellow (DC1). Main works (co-authored): “Kitchen Chronicles” 2019, “House of Miracles” 2020 (LIXIL Booklet).

 

Takahiko KANEMAKI

 

Architectural historian. Assistant professor in the faculty of architecture and building engineering at Kanagawa University. History and theory of modern architecture. Main papers include “Corwin Willson’s Proposal for ‘Mobile House’ and Its Ideological Background” (AIJ Journal of Architecture and Planning, August 2020).

 

Kentaro SHIMOYAMA

 

Painter.M.F.A from Graduate School of Tokyo Zokei University
A major solo exhibition.「 The Whole World Is My Warehouse 」2022.GASBON METABOLISM.Yamanashi,JP「Open End」2022.Peaple.Tokyo,JP「The Window and So On」2022.NADiff A/P/A/R/T .Tokyo,JP「Someday」2019.reading room .Taiwan

 

Makiho AMEMIYA

 

A craft woodworker who graduated from Nagano Prefecture Agematsu Vocational Training School majoring in Woodcraft. Professionally repairing northern European vintage furniture and crafting furniture. In 2022, established KIU furniture factory in Tokyo. Mainly crafting custom order furniture and display furniture.

 

Gaku Inoue

 

Architect. After working at Ishigami Junya Architects, co-director of GROUP. Major works include "Garden beside WHITEHOUSE", "Ebina Art Freeway," and "House for Hamacho”.

 

Yui KIYOHARA

 

Yui Kiyohara is a filmmaker. Her film Our House(2017), won the Grand Prize at the PFF Award Competition 2017 in Japan. The film was screened at more than 10 film festivals, including the 68th Berlin International Film Festival. 

And continued with feature films Remembering Every Night is awaiting release now.

Her several short films include mesh, passing, clear, living(2018) and This Is How We Walk on the Planet(2020).

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 Curator Profile

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Heya

 

A collective consisting of Makiho Amemiya, Gaku Inoue, and Yui Kiyohara. They research and exhibit about  places  from the standpoints of furniture, architecture, and video.

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