“Legend Says” is a series of four installations exhibited in a beautiful small town, Hiketa, in Japan, as part of a group exhibition - "Seeing through the garden" - spread out the whole town. It included two sets of works: a collaborative work "Two Gundara People’s Connecting Conversation" and an individual set of installations "Legend Says."
Two Gundara People’s Connecting Conversation
《Gundara 二人の繋がる話》
Xinyi Zhu, Ayumi Kanno
朱 馨儀、菅野歩美
Mixed media
Dimensions variable
2017
Dimensions variable
2017
This is a collaborative piece by a Chinese artist named Xinyi Zhu and a Japanese artist named Ayumi Kanno. The piece relates to their individual pieces also shown in this exhibition.
"Gundara" is an expression in this Hiketa area that means "unimportant chatting." We heard gundara from these two figures in the Cultural Center, wondering about the conversation these two were having and created a story based on Hiketa oral folklore, as an attempt to become part of the oral tradition. We invited Hiketa people to add their ideas to this story. The story also underwent a transformation when we read it out loud as we are unfamiliar with the local accent. When the audience listens to the piece, the story will be passed on to more locations. Although in different languages, the two figures speak about the same thing– nature and the environment. By conversing in languages based on different cultures, the meaning expands.
Legend Says
伝説によれば
伝説によれば
Xinyi Zhu
朱 馨儀
Mixed media
Dimensions variable
2017
Dimensions variable
2017
This series connects multiple visions set in various locations throughout Hiketa. The visions are inspired by the Hiketa folktales and modern myths that express the relationship between traditional spiritual beliefs and scientific values. With the changes that happen over time, people make new scientific legends and myths, while gradually giving up old spiritual ones. Despite the vast difference between religion and science, the similarities intrigue me. I start to question scientific evidence, just as I examine religious stories. In the meanwhile, I try to believe the spiritual tales as I believe in science and logic. After all, we always live in the stories we made for ourselves.
