Takashima Chi | Yuken Teruya Solo Exhibition "Yuken Teruya: Your Journey"
Yuken Teruya presents a solo exhibition featuring recent works that explore Okinawa's history and modern society.Summary
Yuken Teruya, an artist who uses Okinawan traditional dyeing techniques and everyday materials to sharply present Okinawa's history and geopolitics, will hold a solo exhibition titled "Yuken Teruya: Your Journey" at the Kyoto Tsutaya Books Exhibition Space. The exhibition features recent works centered on the cutwork series "Break the Curse" modeled after Ryukyu traditional patterns and the "Monopoly" series, which cuts up paper money used in the board game to reconstruct it into shapes symbolizing capital and imperialism. The "Break the Curse" series consists of 13 sets and unfolds a story based on the memory of Teruya's grandfather, who survived the Battle of Okinawa. The technique of coexisting traditional auspicious patterns with motifs symbolizing fighter jets and paratroopers continues from his representative work "You-I". Additionally, a work stacking 13 cutworks visualizes the continuity of time as geological strata. The "Monopoly" series includes "Jewelry Royals," which recreates the form of luxurious British Empire jewelry using toy money and game pieces. The exhibition also displays "Heavy Pop," depicting colorful balloons in watercolor, and "Magical spells," which prints declassified U.S. military documents related to Emperor Showa on T-shirts. Through these works, Teruya explores multi-layered themes such as Okinawa's modern history, the image of Okinawa seen by others, resistance against oppression, and consumption.
(Source：artscape)