Exhibition

Takayuki Hara - A Shapeshifting World

22 Feb 2013 – 14 Mar 2013

Event times

Mon - Wed: 8:00 - 18:00 | Thur - Fri: 8:00 - 18:30 | Sat: 10:00 - 15:00

Cost of entry

Free

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unit24 gallery

London, United Kingdom

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  • Tube: London Bridge / Southwark
  • Train: London Bridge Station
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A SHAPESHIFTING WORLD

About

by Takayuki Hara

22 February '14 March 2013

PRIVATE VIEW: Thursday, 21 February, 7 - 9PM

Artist talk with Professor Timon Screech: Saturday, 23 February, 5PM

'A Shapeshifting World' -Takayuki Hara's solo exhibition at Unit24 Gallery -is a collective display of Hara's three-year project 'Shapeshifters'. Inspired by Ovid's Metamorphosis, Hara started his project in 2009; he created a series of drawings and sculptures based on the idea of our ever-changing and fluid identity.


This exhibition contains three main themes inherited from the project ' 'Shapeshifters':

1. Inside Out/Outside In (Shapeshifting Bodies):

This is the first series of work that emerged from the project, focusing on inside of us, what we have internally ' organs. Hara focused on the idea of bodies being the borderline of our society, where we are merely aware of what we are outside rather than inside: our equal organs. Inspired by the writings of Japanese philosopher Yutaka Haniwa and Dostoevsky,on idea of ghosts, this is an attempt to seek a new existence not to be restricted by the idea of identity what we believe it should be.

2. Do Animals Dream of Shapeshifting? (Shapeshifting Animals):

With this theme, Hara explored the world where animal instinct dominates. He was fascinated by the idea of Animal/Human relationship, and what differentiates the line between humans and animals. He was interested in Freud's idea of Ego, Id and Superego for this project, the series of seemingly peaceful drawings provoke the idea of what determines our identity.

3. We All See What We Cannot See (Shapeshifting Nature):

This is the final theme of the project. Hara was fascinated by the idea of ever changing nature without us being aware of it. He travels through macro/micro world of nature in his drawings, with a strong reference to myths and fairy tales, in which he believes that the nature defines embraces the differences, rather than treating them unequally. Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari's idea of identity plays as a huge influence for this project.

This exhibition is accompanied by an artist talk with Professor Timon Screech from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London (SOAS).

Takayuki Hara was born in Tokyo,Japan. He has studied Creative Writing/Japanese Literature at Hosei University in Tokyo, and BA (hons) and MA in Fine Art from City and Guilds of London Art School. His works are included in private collections throughout UK, France, Germany, Poland, and USA, also Greta Sarfarty Collection, and Cythia Corbett Collection, etc. Hara lives and works in London, UK.

'A Shapeshifting World' is part of 'Japan400' 'an international celebration of the 400th anniversary of Japan-Britain relations with a series of cultural events planned in Japan and the U.K.throughout the year. To find out more about Japan400, please visit: www.japan400.com

For further queries about the event, please contact Celeste Huang: celeste@unit24.info

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