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21 October - 6 November 2022
Wing Gallery, Cromwell Place, South Kensington, London 

An exploration of the past re-imagined for the future

TANABE CHIKUUNSAI IV & SAWAKO KAIJIMA and KENSUKE KOIKE

de/re CONSTRUCT features works by Tanabe Chikuunsai IV & Sawako Kaijima and Kensuke Koike who explore themes of deconstructing the past, and the use of technology to reconstruct them into contemporary visual artworks. It celebrates the artists craftsmanship and multidisciplinary art forms with the goal to inspire dialogue and creative exchange.

Tanabe Chikuunsai IV (b.1973, Osaka), a gifted and versatile fourth-generation bamboo artist, has carried on his family’s legacy and drawn on inspiration from his heritage to elevate a long line of bamboo craftsmanship into modern art. By collaborating with Sawako Kaijima (b.1976, Tokyo), a computational specialist and Assistant Professor at Harvard University Graduate School of Design, the duo used software and 3D-printed moulds to aid the design of mathematically complex structures which Chikuunsai IV then masterfully translated into the medium of bamboo.

For Venice and Tokyo-based artist Kensuke Koike (b.1980, Nagoya), his vision to bring history to the future is by deconstructing and reconfiguring vintage photographs to create sculptural works with a surrealist playfulness. His practice is centred around a philosophy of 'no more, no less' exploring the possibilities of creating a new image made up only of itself. This involves using only the existing assets found within an image to create a contemporary visual with a new narrative - a process he has coined as 'single image processing'. Using found objects in this way creates a more dynamic way of working, as although he experiments with many prototypes initially, there is only one chance to work with the original photograph.

Artists will be present at the opening reception 20 October 2022 (Thursday) 17.00-20.00.

In Conversation: Artists’ Talk with Tanabe Chikuunsai IV & Sawako Kaijima and Kensuke Koike and moderated by Dr. Lena Fristch will be held at the Wing Gallery, Cromwell Place on 22 October (Saturday) 11.00-12.30.

Schoeni Projects is also delighted to share their participation in the milestone 25th edition of Asian Art in London; their East Asia Evening will be held on 27 October (Thursday) 17.00-20.00. The exhibition will be open at Wing Gallery, Cromwell Place during that time.

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