KAWAKYU ART Exhibition 2025 Spring ‘Neighbor’s Presence’

The Kawakyu Museum will host the exhibition ‘Neighbor’s Presence-’ from 1 April (Tue) to 11 May (Sun), 2025. The exhibition is directed and curated by Kinan Art Week.

For this exhibition, artist Shinjiro Watanabe created works during his stay in Kinan.
Watanabe projects himself onto nature, particularly plants, and through the act of rooting himself and standing still, he explores the moisture of the soil, the trembling of leaves, and the subtle whispers of nature, engaging in a dialogue with these elements. What does the nature of Kumano have to say to Watanabe, who has actually set foot in the diverse environments surrounding the Kawakyu Museum, such as Banjo-yama, home to the memorial hall of the renowned scholar Minakata Kumagusu, the coastline where the waves of the ocean crash against the shore, and the rock walls where rare plants and animals hide?

Immersing oneself in Watanabe’s works is an experience of touching the presence of nature, our unnoticed neighbour, and hearing the voice of nature that resides within us as human beings.

【Kinan Stay Scenes】

Photo by Manabu Shimoda
                                                                                                           

【View】

Kawakyu Museum Exterior：Photo by Manabu Shimoda　

Location: Kawakyu Museum
*For details, please visit the Kawakyu Museum special page.
Dates: 1 April (Tue) to 11 May (Sun), 2025
Admission: Free admission
*A separate admission fee of ¥1,000 is required for entry to the Kawakyu Museum
*Free admission for residents of Shirahama Town and individuals with a disability certificate.
Organiser: Kawakyu Museum
Direction / Curation: Kinan Art Week Executive Committee
Cooperation: Minakata Kumagusu Memorial Museum, Aura Contemporary Art Foundation, Artport Inc.

【Artist】

Shinjiro Watanebe
Born in Aichi Prefecture in 1995. Currently enrolled in the doctoral programme at Tokyo University of the Arts.
He creates works through dialogue with landscapes and phenomena that emerge when immersing himself in spaces and places.
Based on the idea that the human body is composed of both animal and plant aspects, he aims to bring out the plant nature within humans through his works and to acquire the spirituality of universal living beings.
Major exhibitions include ‘Dyadic Stem’ (The5thFloor, 2020), ‘2020||: Wardian case :||’ (BLOCK HOUSE, 2020), ‘Standing Ovation / The Direction of the Limbs’ (ACAO SPA & RESORT, 2021), and ‘Reborn-Art Festival’ (Plenamiyagi, 2022).

▼Past exhibition views
　

《Swaying Plants》2021 
Photo by Naoki Takehisa 　　　　　

《Night Light 1》2022 
Photo by Shigeta Kobayashi