On Wednesday, I went to the Library Gallery to see the exhibition,
Traditions Transfigured: The Noh Masks of Bidou Yamaguchi. This runs from February 11-May 21, 2016. Its reception was on opening day from 5-8 pm. The idea of the Noh masks originated from Japan and has provided a dynamic space for exploring and expressing human emotion, according to the brief summary in the gallery. In the 14th century, the masks were created to be more modernized and has inspired those in the art world to be drawn to the themes of human suffering and release.
The artist, Bidou Yamaguchi, has not only created traditional masks, but also the iconic female faces of those in the western art world, including the Mona Lisa and the Girl with the Pearl Earring. He has also made masks that capture the look of Kabuki actors. He has made the faces from 2D works of art into 3D masks, giving them depth and, in a sense, life. Bidou has connected the Eastern world with the Western world, all with just a craved block of wood.
There was one area that had two sample masks that you could try out, which I thought was neat, because you could get the sense of how it felt, and to me, they were a lot thicker than I expected, but they weighed pretty light. Across from this station, they had a How-It's-Made display to show how a solid block of wood turns into a Noh Mask. Along the walls were Kabuki masks, as well as the 2D illustrations of the actors alongside of them. The center of the main room had the masks of the Girl with the Pearl Earring and Mona Lisa. behind these two was one of a more supernatural mask, where it was of a white faced woman with white horns protruding out of her hairline. This one reminded me of Maleficent portrayed by Angelina Jolie.
Overall, this was a really interesting gallery to go through. What made it great was that it did not focus on just one side of a culture, but integrated the opposite side of as well! The way that Yamaguchi incorporated famous western art with traditional eastern culture shows that a style of art is not limited to just one culture rather, it is open for anyone.
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| A Quick Overview |
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| 3D vs 2D Kabuki Faces |
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| This reminds me of Maleficent |
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| Can I pull off this face? Yes or Noh? |
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| How do I look? |
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| Girl with the Pearl Earring |
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| Mona Lisa |
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| Comparison |
Yamaguchi is giving a talk soon, isn't he? Like you, I admired the artist's bringing an ancient tradition into the present. The choices are interesting. The painted faces in "The Girl with the Pearl Earring" and the "Mona Lisa" are famously inscrutable and "mask-like."
ReplyDeleteI have been meaning to visit the library gallery this semester. This sounds like an interesting exhibit.
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