KARE-SANSUI

 

"Kare-sansui" or dry landscape was a project to visualize water flow where actual water never exists.

The villagers have long found a spiritual meaning in sawdust. I borrowed the power from it. The new "Kare-sansui" was built in a long-forgotten building. The stream of time based on nature's consequence, this was the theme of this exhibition. Sawdust lightly covered barely remaining mortar floor where most part were lost and soil was visible. White sawdust representing the island and black soil representing river suddenly appeared in the historic building. Randomly scattered scrap woods showed rebirth of physical memories. Visitors could follow the stream and watch the scraps.

The "Kare-sansui" project was a new approach to invite visitors to walk through the visible time flow that was represented by dust, wood and soil.

© 2004- Jun'ichiro ISHII