Cerith Wyn Evans

Taka Ishii Gallery Kyoto is pleased to present a solo exhibition of work by Cerith Wyn Evans. Although Evans has made numerous visits to Japan since the 1990s, this marks his fifth solo exhibition with the gallery and his first in Kyoto. It will feature glass plates of various sizes installed throughout the gallery, which is housed in a 150-year-old machiya townhouse, along with 16 photogravure works incorporating photographs of the gallery.

Evans is known for conceptual works that draw on the endeavors of pioneers in diverse fields such as literature, film, visual art, astronomy, and physics. By masterfully manipulating the “vessels” through which these forerunners’ ideas are expressed – such as the theater stage, text, symbols, images, light, and sound – his works traverse the boundaries of the senses, including sight, spatial sensation, and hearing, to deliver synesthetic experiences. With profound intellect and wit, Evans liberates viewers from perceptual frameworks shaped by social norms and educational systems.

In this exhibition, Evans highlights the timbre of the traditional machiya townhouse architecture, shifting the focus of the work to the space itself. In the essay “In Praise of Shadows”, Junichiro Tanizaki notes that the subdued lighting in Japanese homes accentuates the beauty of lacquerware, maki-e (metallic lacquer decoration), folding screens, and alcoves, observing that Japanese aesthetics are grounded in fine gradations of shadow. Evans places glass plates of varying sizes throughout the gallery, and the faintly perceptible, transparent surfaces quietly capture fleeting rays of light that filter into the building and subtly reflect its architectural details.

Evans has also produced 16 photogravure works dedicated to the building’s architecture. Six of the images capture light within the gallery, depicting delicate, softly falling rays that barely penetrate the interior as if seeping into the earthen walls. The remaining ten were taken in various other locations where Evans perceived a parallel atmosphere. Woven together by the artist’s keen receptivity, these 16 images engage in an ongoing visual dialogue that disrupts and interrogates our perception of the gallery’s physical spaces

Gallery hours Thu-Sat 10:00 – 17:30
Closed Sun – Wed and National Holidays

Exhibition Duration 03.05. – 21.06.2025

www.takaishiigallery.com

Location:
Taka Ishii Gallery Kyoto
123 Yada-cho, Shimogyo-ku
600-8442 Kyoto
Japan