Future Past 2323

Japanese folk tools (No.1-3&9) encountered through interaction with the people of The Yoshigaike village. They are traces of the tools made by people and their lives. The spirituality and memories of life that dwell over time lead to nostalgia for the future. Will the accelerating progress of mankind be entirely engulfed by technology? No. I hypothesized that it is precisely beyond that point that we will reach a cultural singularity where sensitivity to be humanity will be a value.
The work in this old house of Yoshigaike village are furniture and lights by the tools of the past in the present day, but also furniture of the future, envisioned to exist in 2323, the cosmic century where humans will live 300 years from now (humans will probably be traveling freely in the galaxy). I thought that the transformation of old folk tools, once relics, would become tools that are fresher and more full of life, tools that will accompany humanity as it travels through the universe. Hoping that it would be a time to imagine and share narratives that we have yet to see in the current era in which we live.



Bride on Mars

A large box called a Nagamochi was used to hold the bride’s wedding gifts. 2323, in the space century, a bride may marry on Mars. The red metal fittings and bright red glass top of the table presented to look like stick out his tongue. What will the bride have in mind when she marries on Mars with the table?



Imagined the sled, once used to transport charcoal package in the winter, likened to a spaceship that travels through space. 300 years from now, there may still be people on earth who have not yet been able to fly into space. Still, I hope that it will still be commonplace for everyone to think about space odyssey.



The void in Saturn’s rings, discovered by astronomer Giovanni Cassini in 1675. A scarecrow with a straw winter‐cape on his back is propped up against Saturn’s rings as a marker to help people find their way in the universe. Staring to the void, his role is to be a guide to the galaxy far beyond. The scarecrow’s name is Cassini.



A window light that transforms the “Fusuma” (sliding door) format of the Japanese house. As a gate connecting the planet SOLARIS and the ground, it is a nostalgic vision of an encounter with the unknown that has yet to be fulfilled. What does “The Ocean of SOLARIS” think and ask us now?

“SOLARIS” – 1977, directed by Andrey Tarkovsky



The traces that appear on old tools. The textures and blemishes are more fleeting and endearing than anything else. It was once the lid of a large wooden box, but that is lost in the dark and deep darkness, reminding me of a monolith drifting in the void. I hope that it will become “something” that brings awareness, even if it does not bring wisdom to mankind.



Golden folding screen. A tool for the traditional moment, no longer in usual today. Even so, its appearance, like Venus shining in the sky, never loses its luster. In everyday life, when the darkness ends and the morning dawns, we feel the joy of being alive. If we can share death at the same time as we look forward to that view, we may still be able to go onward.



These one‐eyed OBAKE have a meaningful look that originated in ancient Sanskrit culture. The red-eye “A [a]” is the facial expression that is the first pronunciation to make a sound in Sanskrit, which means “truth” and “spirit of inquiry” at the same time. The blue-eyed “UN [hūṃ]” expresses the pronunciation to close the sound, and at the same time means “wisdom” and “nirvana.” There is also the idea that describing the beginning and end of the universe is represented by considering the “A” and “UN” as a pair. In Asia, it is a common sight to see a pair of guardian statues with the expression “A-UN” placed at the entrance of temples and shrines.





300 years from now, will we be the only ones who can be called “human beings,” or will there be androids with mechanical ancestors?From their point of view, the fan of more than 300 years ago may be as good as an ancestor. I imagine that it is our responsibility as old humans to give melancholy and affection to that existence.



I imagine what the existence of “Earth” is like in the space century. Is it a home to return to or a utopia of the past? Were the ancestors(for the androids) in there just things enslaved by humans, or were they friendly partners? Is that he (the blue fan) dreams of the melancholy of the non-human, or is it in the end of those (things) who are relieved that they were not human? There is no answer at this moment.



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