The second floor is dappled in light filtering gently through sliding paper doors. Visitors are greeted by an arch-shaped piece constructed from approximately 4000 orizuru. It expresses the feeling of “clarity” Onogawa felt when he first visited Shodo Island.
Let’s hear the tale from the artist himself:
“The time I spent on the ferry to the island, I felt like the murky feeling that followed me from Tokyo was cleared away. I wanted to apply that clarity inspired by the islands floating in the sea and the horizon to my work. I thought the pieces I made in Tokyo were too vivid to display in Setouchi. Because of that, I based the piece on display here on the color white as well as soft curves.
I hope everyone can feel the clarity of Setouchi through this piece.”
Eight million gods preside over Japan. The Japanese have believed in unseen entities since time immemorial. Over 100 years ago, it was believed that gods called “Tsukumogami” lived inside tools and musical instruments; even now, certain trees, forests, and stones are lovingly enshrined in the name of different gods. Remnants of that animist tradition also exist here on Shodo Island.
“I feel there’s a valuable and mysterious ‘je-ne-sais-quoi’ hidden inside the orizuru. And I believe that’s what ‘beauty’ is. I’m certain visitors will each have their own unique “stroll” with the orizuru. What sort of feelings or emotions are stirred will depend on the person, but I hope that by entering into a dialogue with the pieces, the art will, in turn, inspire that heart-rocking ‘je-ne-sais-quoi.’”
