Jompet Kuswidananto
Words and Possible Movement
2013
Motorbikes without machine, fabric flags
Dimension variable
Collection: Mori Art Museum, Tokyo

In 2017, 50 years after the formation of ASEAN, the National Art Center, Tokyo, Mori Art Museum and the Japan Foundation Asia Center will stage “SUNSHOWER: Contemporary Art from Southeast Asia 1980s to Now,” the largest-ever exhibition of Southeast Asian contemporary art to be held in Japan.
The exhibition is a culmination of the “SEA PROJECT” which follows the process of the exhibiting-making—such as research, symposia, and curatorial meetings—from its conception in 2014.

The “sunshower” —rain falling from clear skies—is an intriguing meteorological phenomenon, and a frequent occurrence in the tropical climes of Southeast Asia. Here, sunshowers serve as a poetic metaphor for the vicissitudes of a region that in the latter half of the 20th century, in the wake of the colonial era, experienced enormous political, social and economic upheaval: Cold War conflicts and dictatorships followed by modernization and the spread of democracy, and in more recent years, remarkable economic advancement, investment, and urban development. Out-of-the-blue rainfall can also be regarded as a metaphor for the ambiguous nature of these ups and downs.

Multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, multi-faith Southeast Asia has nurtured a truly dynamic and diverse culture. This exhibition will explore contemporary art in Southeast Asia from the 1980s onward from various perspectives, including aspirations for freedom, identity, growth and its dark sides, community, faith and tradition, and the revisiting of history; showcasing that dynamism and diversity while comparing and contrasting Southeast Asian contemporary art with international contemporary art trends.

• ●Period
• Wednesday, July 5, 2017 – Monday, October 23, 2017
• ●Venues
• The National Art Center, Tokyo Special Exhibition Gallery 2E（7-22-2 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan）
• Mori Art Museum（53F Roppongi Hills Mori Tower, 6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan）
• ●Organizers
• The National Art Center, Tokyo; Mori Art Museum; The Japan Foundation Asia Center

Korakrit Arunanondchai
Painting with history in a room filled with people with funny names 3
2015
Video
24 min. 55 sec.
Courtesy: Carlos/Ishikawa London; Clearing Brussels / New York