END OF SUMMER: The Creativity of a New Generation Related Event
Please join End of Summer alumni Ai Sugiura (2019) and Hanae Utamura (2017) for presentations on the themes of time, communication, and distance in their works at the Bullseye Projects in the Pearl District.
They will be joined by Keenan Jay for a discussion regarding their experiences during the residency and for Q and A with the audience.
About the Speakers
Ai Sugiura is Tokyo based multidisciplinary artist who focuses on the trivial objects of everyday life and rethinks their meaning and function. Sugiura’s artistic practice is driven by her interest in material and space, inside/outside, memory, and the transition between the ordinary and extraordinary. Sugiura’s work often takes the form of sculpture and installation, and in recent years she has been incorporating photography into her three-dimensional production and take the technique of photo collage. Since 2015, Sugiura has been part of the artist collective Sabbatical Company.
Hanae Utamura is a Japanese interdisciplinary artist based in New York and Tokyo. Her work engages with historical memory, questioning the notion of progress in modernity, ecology and technology. Utamura’s media include video, performance, installation, and sculpture. She connects human beings and the earth, using the physical human body as a conduit. She explores negotiations and conflicts between the human and the non-human, and how all the varieties of the wills of life manifest such as in the field of science. By decentralizing the human perspective, Utamura diversifies historical narratives, and enters the imagination of nature.
About the Moderator
Keenan Jay is an art historian based in Tokyo, Japan.
More About End Of Summer
End Of Summer (EOS) exists to build a dialogue between the U.S. and Japan through the Pacific Northwest and the expression of creative ideas. End Of Summer explores the art of Japan in an increasingly globalized society, reconsidering notions of East and West, center and periphery.
In its original format under the creative vision of Matt Jay, up to six Japanese artists were invited to participate in the program through an open call. The residency uses the setting of Portland, a city with deep cultural ties to Japan, a community-oriented ethos, and dynamic arts scene—a haven for creative exploration. Furthermore, the program emphasizes research-based experiences rather than a demand for artistic production.
Carrying the creed of the project manifested by its founder, End Of Summer is now continuing its mission within Japan Institute. End Of Summer and Japan Institute together are seeking to harness the traditional craftsmanship and cutting-edge artistry of Japan already embedded in Portland Japanese Garden, supported by the vibrant and creative energy of the Pacific Northwest.
About Japan Institute
Japan Institute was established in 2022 as a programmatic arm of Portland Japanese Garden to provide a cultural intersection between the East and West through the shared appreciation of nature and creativity. This sibling organization allows the Garden to share and expand the arts and cultural programs beyond the Garden’s physical boundaries, deepening international partnerships with like-minded organizations, while continuing to engage diverse people in dialogues about creativity and connection to nature.
This program is presented by Japan Institute of Portland Japanese Garden and Art J Foundation in partnership with Bullseye Projects
For more information, please contact Yuki Wallen, the Matt Jay End Of Summer Program Manager, at ywallen@japanesegarden.org.
Portland Japanese Garden and Japan Institute share the mission: Inspiring Harmony & Peace
