Shigeko Hirakawa
Shigeko Hirakawa ( Japanese 平川 滋 子 , Hirakawa Shigeko ; * 1953 in Kurume , Japan ) is a Japanese artist who has lived and worked in Paris ( France ) since 1983 .
biography
- 1971–1975 studies at Tōkyō Joshi Daigaku ( Japanese history ).
- 1976–1980 studies at the Tōkyō Geijutsu Daigaku ( oil painting ).
- 1983–1986 studied at the École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts de Paris (ENSBA), (master class Olivier Debré ), thanks to a grant from the French government.
- Exhibitions since 1980.
philosophy
Hirakawa started out as a painter, but since her arrival in France (1983) her interest turned more and more to the relationship between man and nature. Her art now almost always takes place in the open air and centered around the basic elements of our planet, water, air, sun, in connection with plants.
The storms that devastated large parts of Europe in 1999 and also destroyed a work in the making by Hirakawa, inspired her to work on the relationship to our environment and the forces of nature. The heat wave of 2003 exacerbated this trend.
Work examples
Air en péril is an art project inspired by an EU report on the state of Europe's forests. It consists of three main parts:
- Arbre à photosynthèse (tree of photosynthesis)
- Roue aérienne (air bike)
- Molécule d'oxygène (oxygen molecule)
Arbre à photosynthèse was already realized in France in 2006, in the USA in 2007 and in Japan in 2009. More than a thousand flat discs with a curved edge are attached to a tree. The material of the panes changes color when exposed to sunlight, from milky white at night to pale pink to intense purple during the day. The work visualizes the photosynthesis of the plants, which absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen.
Hirakawa's questions are serious, but the artist treats them in a poetic way. Her work Tobbogan des Dieux (Die Rutsche der Götter, 2006), 30 meters high and with a total length of 66 meters, refers to Japanese mythology and its answer to the question of how the gods come to earth and that of storms other forces of nature can soothe unsettled people.
Below are links to the photos of the individual works
Art in public space
- 1992: Flotte ile , public contract from the Conseil Régional d'Ile de France
- 1997: Arbre généalogique / Mort (family tree / death), Transmutation / Vie (transformation / life), Triennale Mont-de-Marsan , Mont-de-Marsan (France)
- 1999: Cinq Sphères Rouges (Five Red Circles), University of Tokyo , Tokyo (Japan)
- 2001: Ellipse rouge (Red Ellipse), Josai Daigaku (Josai University), Chiba Prefecture (Japan)
- 2003: Air branché & Eau domestiquée (connected air under and tamed water), Montpellier (France)
- 2006: Arbres ailés (winged trees), Chateau de Jehay , Liège / Liège (Belgium)
- 2006: Tobbogan des Dieux (The Slide of the Gods), Biennale d'art contemporain , Jouy-en-Josas (France)
- 2007: Arbre à photosynthèse (Tree of Photosynthesis), Jamaica Center for Arts & Learning , New York (USA)
- 2009: Trois Arbres à photosynthèse (Three Trees of Photosynthesis), National Art Center , Tokyo (Japan)
Solo exhibitions (selection)
- 2001: Eau suivie (The course of the water), Maison des Arts de Malakoff , Malakoff (France)
- 2001: Sculptures et Peintures (sculptures and paintings), Choisy-le-Roi town hall (France)
- 2003: Air branché & Eau domestiqué (Connected air and tamed water), Chateau d'O Park , Mortrée (France)
- 2005: Air, Poumon (air, lungs), Musée de la mine du Nord / Pas de Calais , Lewarde (France)
- 2005: Air et Eau / Eau-Ciel 2005 (Air and Water / Water Heaven 2005), Galerie Parisud , Cachan (France)
- 2006: Arbre à photosynthèse (Tree of Photosynthesis), Argenteuil Town Hall Park (France)
- 2007: Arbre à photosynthèse (tree of photosynthesis), Musée de la mine du Nord / Pas de Calais , Lewarde (France)
Links to the works
- Arbre à photosynthèse (tree of photosynthesis): http://shigeko-hirakawa.com/NewSite/PortFolio_Detail_F.html?144
- Arbres ailés (winged trees): http://shigeko-hirakawa.com/NewSite/Nature_10_F.html
- Tobbogan des Dieux (The Slide of the Gods): http://shigeko-hirakawa.com/NewSite/Nature_12_F.html
- Air, Poumon (air, lungs): http://shigeko-hirakawa.com/NewSite/Nature_8_F.html
- Eau-Ciel (water-air): http://shigeko-hirakawa.com/NewSite/EauCiel_F.html
- Air branché & Eau domestiqué (Connected air and tamed water): http://shigeko-hirakawa.com/NewSite/Nature_1_F.html
- Eau domestiquée (Tamed Water): http://shigeko-hirakawa.com/NewSite/EauDom_F.html
- Eau suivie (The course of the water): http://shigeko-hirakawa.com/NewSite/EauSuiv_F.html
- Arbre généalogique / Mort (family tree / death): http://shigeko-hirakawa.com/NewSite/Nature_2_F.html
- Transmutation / Vie (transformation / life): http://shigeko-hirakawa.com/NewSite/Nature_3_F.html
Web links
personal data | |
---|---|
SURNAME | Hirakawa, Shigeko |
ALTERNATIVE NAMES | 平川 滋 子 (Japanese) |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Japanese artist |
DATE OF BIRTH | 1953 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Kurume , Japan |