This installation is on view through August 29th, 2014. Open everyday: Noon – 8ish
AG Gallery
Contemporary Art Gallery | Williamsburg Brooklyn, NY
”ANTI-GLASSWORKS 2014″ TAKAO SAKATA NEW INSTALLATION on view 8/22~29
Takao Sakata, who has been keep having annual installation at AG Gallery for over 3 years, has a long career as glass-work artist live and work in Shiga, Japan. He would like to introduce, not only audience also other glass-work artists in the world, the new era of glass-work art which must be created from a strong passion to breakthrough the conventionality of current “glass art”.
This is his fourth year of appearance in annual summer installation at AG Gallery. He also preys repose of victims’ souls of the Tohoku Earthquake on March 11, 2011 in the works, “KUKAI NO HOTORI (On the bank of suffering)”.
Artist Statement
“When we look at the glass-work art in nowadays, I can only see weak, cheap, and flatter works. They are called “the modern glass art” or “the world glass art” and seen as if they are the real art. Glass artisans without strong belief or knowledge and the lack of outstanding glass-work art critics abstract making progress of the art. The substantial of art is to express nature, society and human being through clear senses and techniques. It means the attribute of glass material doesn’t produce any arts. Marcel Duchamp signed that people in this century had been completely blind to the art. It is also the severe criticism to “the modern glass-work art.”
Artists accused a falsehood of an era with their insanity that is inherent in themselves, which is a reason why many Western artists have been respected. Those artists risked their lives through their representations. Social value of artists does not change at any time; artists are useless all the time.
Young artists should think carefully. Artists are the ones who decide to gaze live and death; memento mori, in all creations universally. You must not rely on what critics think about your works. In solitude, you have to let time pass. You should not let representations calm and rip off this century. “
—Takao Sakata
Takao Sakata
Live and work in Shiga, Japan
Graduated from Tokyo Glass Art Institute
The annual gallery installation “Anti-Glassworks 2014” is on view from August 22 through August 28, 2014. AG Gallery opens everyday from 12pm to 8pm during the show period.
Summer greeting from AG Gallery
How’s your summer going? We keep opening our gallery space on this whole summer! Some special exhibitions are coming up late August though, we keep having new works from our current artists which is perfect for summer souvenir, new room decor for fall, and gift for any occasion.
Keep you updated about up coming shows and new arrivals soon. You can also get our recent activities on Instagram and Twitter account, both @aboutglamourinc.
Have a fabulous summer days, folks!
New Artists from Japan
Happy May Day all.
We just started to show the works by two of Japanese artists from Tokyo, Mari Hanzawa and Yori Nakamura. Please feel free to swing by our gallery space for Mari Hanzawa’s knitted Japanese KOKESHI dolls and Yori Nakamura’s handmade accessories made with vintage button collections, their works will be here limited time period.
MARI HANZAWA
1985 Started career as model in Tokyo
1990 Work as photographer manager at Hanzawa studio
2011 Volunteering after Earthquake in Tohoku for her hometown
2012 Started to create Coquesienne
2013 First solo exhibition at Gallery @btf in Kachidoki, Tokyo
2014 “SICF15” at Spiral in Aoyama
Message from MARI
Right after huge earthquake had happened on March 11, 2011, I went back to my hometown in Miyagi every month for volunteering. Though I’ve done so many things to get people back to normal life there as a volunteer, I would like to do something special as an artist to cheer up people in Tohoku; it was the time when”Coquesienne” knitted doll which has shape of KOKESHI was born. KOKESHI is one of the most famous souvenirs which is handmade wooden doll made by local craftsman in Miyagi prefecture from Edo era (late 18th century). I would like to continue creating them and be a new icon of restoration of Tohoku, Japan.
YORI NAKAMURA
Graduated from Bunka Fashion College in Display Design Major
After she had worked as Window Display Designer at department stores, Visual Merchandiser and Food Coordinator, she started her career as a Button Artist. She has done many exhibition at various venues in Tokyo, also teaches classes “how to create button art pieces”. At this time, we exhibit her button x zipper necklaces, brooches, zip earrings, and more.
Message from YORI
There was a picture from one of my friends who was in a support activity group of elementary schools in Nepal. “They don’t have even a spare button for their school uniform.” Me and my friends decided to establish a fund for buttons, then we received hundreds of colorful buttons over many years. As I see many of buttons in different colors, shapes and materials, they get me to creating something and I end up with those accessories.
For more details about artists and works, please feel free to email us at chiharu@aboutglamour.net
Artist Pick Up: APAK
Where is your Spring? Ours is here, AG Gallery. Currently, many of new art prints which are perfect for your new season’s room decor are on display: the works by one of our favorite artists, APAK (Aaron + Ayumi) from Portland, OR. Most of prints were all gone in few months, so we just received some of back-in-stocks and brand new ones.
As many people love their works so far and we have been asked so many times about them, we did a brief interview with Aaron and Ayumi about them and their works. Hope you enjoy and get the idea how their unique and sweet art pieces are created.
AG Gallery 
You must be logged in to post a comment.