Left: Arakawa Shusaku & Madeline Gins
Right: Site of Reversible Destiny – Yoro Park
Conceptual artist Arakawa Shusaku died in New York on May 19. He was 73.
Arakawa began his career as a jockey for the avant-garde movement in the 1950s. He participated in the 1957 Yomiuri Independent exhibition, showing works from his “coffin” series. In 1961 he moved his base to New York, where he met his partner and longtime collaborator Madeline Gins. Arakawa represented the Japanese Pavilion at the 1970 Venice Biennale with paintings and three-dimensional works from his “diagrams” series. He later began focusing on architecturally oriented projects. Among those in Japan are Ubiquitous Site, Nagi’s Ryoanji, Architectural Body (1994, Nagi Museum of Contemporary Art), Site of Reversible Destiny – Yoro Park (1995, Yoro, Gifu) and Reversible Destiny Lofts Mitaka in Memory of Helen Keller. Arakawa was awarded the Japanese Medal of Honor with Purple Ribbon in 2003.
An exhibition of early works by Arakawa Shusaku is currently underway at the National Museum of Art, Osaka.
Funeral for Bioengineering to Not to Die – Early Works by Arakawa Shusaku
2010.4.17 – 6.27
The National Museum of Art, Osaka
http://www.nmao.go.jp/
Arakawa Shusaku＋Madeline Gins Reversible Destiny Project
2010.5.10 – 6.25
Museum and Archives Kyoto Institute of Technology
http://www.cis.kit.ac.jp/~siryokan/ArakawaGinzuTenmeiHantenTenH220510toH220625.html