[Exhibition] Twenty views of Moto Kaido

Period: 25th August – 9th September
Venue: MAD City Gallery
Organized by: PARADISE AIR, MAD City
Cooperated by: Agency for Cultural Affairs, Matsudo City

About the project :
The aim of the project was to examine how the historical road from Edo to Mito looks like today. Will it be possible to travel the entire section of twenty stations on foot? What will it be like? How much route has changed? How many parts of the route will contain its historical character? The road once crossed in both directions by travelers, merchants or artists became the goal of my research and artistic inquiries during the artistic residency in Paradise Air, August 2018.

The original concept came from the possibility of paying for the night with his artistic work during his stay in Matsudo (according to the principle of “one night, one artwork”) which is part of the way to Mito and his first station in Chiba prefecture. In terms of artistic form, the series of twenty works was referring to in sheet format both to traditional Japanese ukiyo-e as well as to the technique of anime film hand painted frame by frame, acrylic on celluloid screen. Next thing to do was “translating” the photographic documentation into the graphical image. Employ color palette used in the GMCC series (Google Maps Color Code), adjusting the composition and diversifying the cycle with intertwining views day and night mode. This series is also based on color code pallette: streets, greenery, vertical greenery, sky, water, buildings, etc.

Photographic documentation on the basis of which the series of views was created was collected during five days of walking in various atmospheric conditions. Path between the twenty stations were summarized and gave an approximate distance of 120 km. Despite the fact that the no. 6 highway runs along the former route, it does not exactly coincide with the course of the walking trail. Therefore, this route was adjusted so that some sections could be walked, however, always remaining within the eye distance of road No. 6. An interesting remnant of ancient times on the trail were road signs carved in stone, old buildings with an annotation that Mito Kaido ran just this way or small temples hidden along the trail so that you can hide in or take a rest.
Currently, it is possible to travel this route on foot. However, nowadays natural stations are stopping places, gas stations, or Mc Donalds restaurants. It is not a friendly road to walking artists but it does not have to be that way anymore.

Kamil Tatara
August 2018

Profile :
Kamil Tatara
I was born in famous Polish city of Szczebrzeszyn in year 1981. Studied Fine Arts at Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun. Mastering in 2006 in Drawing Media. Durning years of practice I decide to stay close to more classical forms of art like painting and drawing but also, I use video, installation or object as a way of expression. I usually create my artistic work inside my own studio, but I’m going outside for creative process by watching people around, reading and studying human condition. (Sentences Series) Everything that is connected to social, history, culture, politics aspects of life (Exodus Series). But simultaneously in same time extremely important for my is studying and exploring pure artistic path not related to anything except conceptual issues (GMCC Series). I feel like been Artist is permanent state of research. Some of my latest works was exhibited in Seoul – Korea, Birmingham, London – England, Gorlitz – Germany and Krakow, Poznan – Poland.
http://www.tatarakamil.com/</a >