Private Viewing：WAKU

WAKU
Gallery COMMON

Gallery COMMON's neon artist WAKU held a private viewing at CONTRAST on the occasion of his exhibition at "Art Fair Tokyo 2022". Wakui. Untitled N01.2022.8mm neon glass, argon gas, glass box with steel frame.1356 x 1642 x 942 mm. Photo by Yosuke Torii. Courtesy of Gallery COMMON.

WAKU

Waku was born in Tokyo in 1996, where he currently lives and works. Waku’s practice centers around the exploration of neon light. Using the medium to challenge our understanding of material, form, and element, Waku probes into deeper questions about how we perceive and relate to the world. Neon, a medium that is often culturally associated with signage, is treated as a final form in and of itself within Waku’s works. The son of a Buddhist temple family, Waku’s childhood exposure to candle-lit prayers and shining golden Buddha statues shaped his ‘formative experience of light,’ and he naturally found himself drawn to the element as a pathway to creating environments. In 2017, he began training as a craftsman at Shimada Neon, one of the leading factories in Japan, before eventually moving to New York where he studied under the tutelage of distinguished neon specialist David Ablon, who also worked on pieces by the late 20th century artist Nam June Paik. A craftsman as well as an artist, Waku’s intimate relationship with the physical hardware that powers neon (glass, electricity, argon gas, etc.) functions as a starting point for his evolving practice, allowing him to flexibly experiment with ways of “setting neon light free” to create new meaning. Following his training period, Waku returned to Japan and established his neon sign studio gokou while continuing to pursue his artistic practice. Recent activities include the solo exhibition “Sobokukou” at CON_ and Domicile Tokyo (2022) and the solo exhibition “In Person” at Gallery COMMON (2020), among others.

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Gallery COMMON

Founded in 2010 by creative agency en one tokyo and currently under the direction of co-founder Satoru Arai, Gallery COMMON emerged from the street culture of Harajuku as an intimate space for both Japanese and international artists and trendsetters to interact with the local scene.

About CONTRAST: In 2022, CONTRAST opened as a creative space in Yoyogi-Hachiman, Tokyo. The interior, based on a 45-year-old structure, consists of three floors under the concept of "reconstruction," and is managed by IN FOCUS, a digital branding studio that operates under the theme of "We propose new perspectives through a collective pursuit of digital excellence.". The space not only serves as its own creative space but also aims to be widely open to the public, providing a space for continuous and experimental reconstruction by its users, breaking free from limitations. Focusing on various forms of expression and encountering the creators who produce them, we will come to understand the importance of "CONTRAST = comparison" in our endeavors. Operated by IN FOCUS.In 2022, CONTRAST opened as a creative space in Yoyogi-Hachiman, Tokyo. The interior, based on a 45-year-old structure, consists of three floors under the concept of "reconstruction," and is managed by IN FOCUS, a digital branding studio that operates under the theme of "We propose new perspectives through a collective pursuit of digital excellence.". The space not only serves as its own creative space but also aims to be widely open to the public, providing a space for continuous and experimental reconstruction by its users, breaking free from limitations. Focusing on various forms of expression and encountering the creators who produce them, we will come to understand the importance of "CONTRAST = comparison" in our endeavors. Operated by IN FOCUS.

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