Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Power of small things.

I had a dialogue with the artist Rei Naito for a digital radio program by NHK. We have had several conversations before. Some of them has been published in Japanese. This was to be our first dialogue to be put "on air".

I have the highest admirations for Rei Naito's works. My first encounter with Naito's work was when I visited the "Being given" installation in Kinza. There, after some minutes of bewilderments, I knew that I was experiencing something quite extraordinary and new in life.

During the radio time, Rei Naito said that during the process of making something, the "intensity" of the spirit is the key element. Unless she can maintain that intensity, while being relaxed so that she can be flexible with the hand movements, she cannot infuse life into the small items that she produces with strings, metal wires, glasses, and papers.

Rei Naito confided that her creations are concerned with the question: "Can we regard the existence as life in the earthly word as a blessing?"

The power of small things. All life form, whether powerful or weak, are small compared to the world we inhibit. The size of the universe is 13.7 billion light years.

The president of a world's superpower is very small compared to it. The question of life translates into infusing strength into small things.

Rei Natio's magical art makes us realize that, as instantiations of life, we are ever blessed by the power of small things.



Rei Naito's work. From Monty DiPietro's review of the artist.

4 comments:

Utako said...

Stimulating article.

The way small things or details are alive or dead might decide the work.
When we notice a small thing, it is wonderful by itself, but it will be more attractive by being put on a certain context. I think it is because small things are relative products similar to us.

"The intensity of the spirit" is essential to compose the context. Indeed it is very difficult to maintain and grow.

I think everybody enshrines insignificant small gems at bottom, but artists make desperate efforts to infuse life and strength into them.

Why do we spend such a crazy energy on it?
I could touch the key word "blessing" to read this article of a dialogue.

Anonymous said...

In Japanese,
there are such expression
――"aeka", "kasokeshi", "honoka", and "hakanai".
Though they mean faint, delicate, fleeting, dim,
these words have the power and sound beautiful for me.

kirai said...

You may like a lot this talk if you haven't seen it yet http://www.ted.com/talks/willard_wigan_hold_your_breath_for_micro_sculpture.html

Anonymous said...

oh i did not know "aeka".

it has having a beautiful sound and means faint.

Ms/Mr. Anonymous, I totally agree with you, these words have the power. maybe because these are Japanese peoples' high values.

I feel comfortable, thank you so much.