Year: 2019
Medium: oil on canvas, digital print on vinyl sheet
Dimensions: canvas: 292 x 388 cm (115 x 152 3/4 in.) vinyl sheet: 1100 x 295 cm (433 x 116 1/8 in.), 2 sheets
Acquired from ANOMALY, 2022
This work was presented at the Nagoya City Art Museum venue for the “Aichi Triennale 2019”. At the Triennale, it was exhibited as an installation with video and other works. As in Imazu’s previous works, the motifs are images sourced from various media, processed, and redrawn as paintings. The glitches and bugs that have become a characteristic expression of Imazu’s works can also be seen. However, appreciating this work requires a different perspective beyond techniques and methods. Imazu has relocated her production base to Bandung, Indonesia since 2018. This work deals with the theme of various issues caused by human intervention in Indonesia’s wildlife and natural environment. Currently, about half of Indonesia’s land is covered by tropical rainforest, taking pride in its prominent biodiversity in the world. However, the country’s rapid economic development has led to large-scale deforestation of paper and timber resources, with forest development through mining and conversion for agricultural land. It raises concern about the critical decline of rare plants and animals. Imazu turns her attention toward what is lost in exchange for human prosperity. On the large canvas, a Komodo dragon, cassowary, orangutan, and other animals are depicted along with hand grenades and a figure aiming a hunting gun. Various objects are entangled in a mesh pattern that resembles an extended cast net. Palm trees and berries are depicted, and the liquid-like substance dripping might allude to palm oil. On the large banner-like sheet suspended from the ceiling, a wasteland that looks like a mining site, smoke from explosions, and silhouettes of various animals with symbolically depicted humans are mixed together. Depending on how one interprets the word “alive” depicted in the artwork, it appears to have a more serious meaning. The work is a representation of the human umwelt that interweaves with karma and greed.
Photo：Kim Doyoon
Courtesy of Jeonnam Provincial Art Museum
