“In an age where abstraction and mass-appeal often serve to discourage political and social commentary in art, seeing works which clearly and unabashedly connect to relevant issues makes for a delightful and refreshing experience.”
Client: Setouchi Reflection Trip, the official travel guide to the Setouchi Region of Japan.
Project Description: Write a travel advertorial with photographs.
A Quote
“In an age where abstraction and mass-appeal often serve to discourage political and social commentary in art, seeing works which clearly and unabashedly connect to relevant issues makes for a delightful and refreshing experience.”
The Inside Scoop
Art Base Momoshima is one of those places you’ve gotta love modern art to even want to go to, what with being hella out of the way on a tiny island in the Setonaikai. But it’s an awesome project, and I loved the socio-political angle championed by many of the pieces on display.
The theme of oil dependence came up more than once, and the money ant farms provided punchy commentary as well.
But the showstopper for me was the Godzilla installation in the warehouse next to U2 where we were staying. Aside from being enormous and dramatically lit, it had this subwoofer-enhanced apocalyptic rumble which fit perfectly with the visuals. Like, as soon as I walked in I was like, “Uhhhhhh… Holy shit…”
Photographing it was loads of fun too and presented a great challenge. The warehouse interior was super dark, with spotlights trained on the Godzilla trash mountain, and with a projection display creating Godzilla’s eye. So inky corners, spotlight refuse with stark shadows, and a bright projection dead in the middle. In other words, an exposure nightmare. So I wound up grabbing multiple exposures and blending them in post.
Not to toot my own horn, but I think the shot turned out great, and it’s the only pic I’ve seen of that work where the projected eye was clearly visible along with the rest of the installation.
My Favorite Part
Massive, evil, Godzilla garbage pile with atomic explosions bursting across its feverishly searching eye. So epic!
See the results:
Art Base Momoshima – A Hidden Treasure Trove of Modern Art
