Opening tonight in New York City is a group exhibition of Japanese artists whose work in various media including glass wrestles with a new reality in the wake of the devastating earthquake and tsunami that unleashed their destruction on the Japanese coast in spring of 2011 and led to one of the world's worst nuclear accidents. The redefined landscape of the post-Fukushima era is the subject of the show entitled “Duality of Existence — Post Fukushima” and debuting this evening at Freidman Benda. Japan has a uniquely complex relationship with nuclear power as the only nation to have endured a nuclear attack (with the U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagisaki in the waning days of WWII in 1945). Following the nuclear disaster and radiation release in 2011, the country struggled to understand the truth of the extent of the damage to the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant which is considered a combination of natural and human factors, and the government control of information about safety created a firestorm of discontent and soul-searching.
The exhibition features a group of contemporary Japanese artists, from the well-established Motohiko Odani and Takahiro Iwasaki to emerging artists such as Kazuki Umezawa, Hirofumi Isoya and Masaharu Sato. Emerging artist Yusuke Suga will be making his debut in the United States along with artwork from Japan’s most controversial collective Chim↑Pom. The work on exhibit mixes many materials including glass and runs through August 9, 2014.
IF YOU GO:
“Duality of Existence — Post Fukushima” Group exhibition of contemporary Japanese art Friedman Benda 515 West 26th Street New York, NY 10001 Tel: (212) 239-8700 Website