The artwork from the Setouchi Triennale 2013 that I want to tell you about today is among the most beautiful new works from this year. Moreover, it’s completely in the philosophy of the Triennale and is a real love message to Ogijima.
It’s called Memory Bottles (記憶のボトル) and it was made by Mayumi Kuri.
Located in an old storehouse that was already used in 2010, Memory Bottles is made of about a thousand little bottles hanging in clusters in the room, each one of them being lit by a small led.
Each bottle holds small objects: cut out pictures, toys, trinkets that used to belong to Ogijima’s residents, and all together they form a sort of archive of the islanders lives and memories.
The result is both stunningly beautiful and really moving (once again, my poor photography skills don’t do it full justice), as it gathers in a same location a history of the people of Ogijima, their memories. It really is some sort of incarnation of the island’s very identity, in other words, its soul.
I don’t know if Memory Bottles will be a permanent installation or not – I really wish it will become one, but in case it doesn’t do not miss it under any circumstance if you come to attend the Summer or Fall session of the Setouchi Triennale 2013.
Access: Open every day during the Setouchi Triennale sessions (in other terms: from July 20th to September 1st, as well as October 5th to November 4th), from 9am to 4.30pm.
Entrance fee is 300 yen (first visit is free for Art Passport holders).
Memory Bottle is my favourite in the entire festival. Well, maybe not my absolute favourite, but it definitely made a huge impact on me. Don’t worry about photography skills. I think it is just a difficult piece to photograph no matter what. Thanks for the photos. 🙂
Thanks for the comforting words. 😉
I think I know where my photographic skills are (not that bad, but not that good either) and sometimes it frustrates me as I’d like to be much better, and I feel it’s not out of reach, I’m just missing something (practice maybe? as in go an practice taking better picture with that precise goal in mind when I do it)