New art for a new century:
Japanese artist Kenji Yanobe makes his American debut
Center for the Arts Galleries, March 12 - June 1, 1997

7 January 1997, SAN FRANCISCO With an emphasis on invention and humor, Center for the Arts Yerba Buena Gardens welcomes one of Japan's leading young artists for his first American exhibition, Survival System Train and Other Sculpture by Kenji Yanobe, on view March 12 through June 1, 1997.
Born in the 1960s, Yanobe grew up during the economic boom of the 1970s and 80s with its material affluence and pervasive mass media. His aesthetic is based in manga otaku, the explosive Japanese comic book and animation culture which combines great technical skill and an outrageous sense of humor. Yanobe's industrial-looking work blends innocent childhood fears with the unbridled spirit of a mad scientist; indeed, his workplace is less a studio than a laboratory. Using traditional sculptural ideas, a heavy pop culture influence and technology as his signature tools, his resulting inventions take a humorous look at mankind's relationship to machines, with a nod to ecological damage, a wink at the passing of the industrial age--and more than a dash of paranoia thrown in for good measure.
Made from scavenged machinery and industrial materials, Yanobe's mechanized suits and vehicles are, more often than not, intended to protect the user from unnamed potential threats. Yellow Suit, for example, is a full body of armor that shields against the coming of radioactivity. Sometimes Yanobe's objects are used for conquest, as with Foot Soldier (Godzilla), a work designed to crush and annihilate one's enemies, much like the original namesake did to Tokyo in over 40 Japanese horror flicks.
In total contrast, other pieces are used to promote inner well-being, such as Tanking Machine, an early work that induces meditative states with its sensory deprivation tank of heated saline solution. Ever the one to break through artistic barriers, Yanobe suggests that for total enjoyment of Tanking Machine, one should experience it in a bathing suit. These sculptures are functional and interactive, as technically convincing as they are visually arresting. But, what could once safely be called "interactive" has been challenged by Yanobe: some of his machines would require the equivalent of a driver's license to operate.
Yanobe has shown solo at contemporary art museums in Berlin, Paris and Tokyo as well as group exhibitions in Amsterdam, Marseilles and Bordeaux. Center Artistic Director for Visual Arts and exhibition curator Renny Pritikin happened upon his work when he visited Japan last year, and this solo exhibition marks one of the first opportunities for a new generation of pop-culture Japanese artists to exhibit in this country. Says Pritikin, "The distinctions between so- called 'high' and 'low' art are no longer useful in understanding cultures--in America or elsewhere. Yanobe's work is living proof of that." For his American debut, Yanobe has created new inventions in addition to selections from his body of work developed in Japan and France.
On Saturday, March 15 at 4:30 pm in the Theater, Center for the Arts hosts a panel discussion exploring the ways in which pop culture, high technology and traditional cultural concerns filter through contemporary American and Japanese cultures. Moderated by Harry Lin, producer for Channel A, a new Asian and Asian American web site, speakers include Yanobe, San Francisco author Fred Schodt, who has written three books on Japanese culture and Eric Nakamura, editor of Giant Robot magazine. Tickets are $5 and include gallery admission. Also, Center for the Arts' Screening Room will feature a selection of film and video exploring aspects of the Japanese manga tradition, featuring dazzling animation and thought-provoking story lines.
In conjunction with Kenji Yanobe's exhibition, Center for the Arts presents Cyberslam on Sunday, May 18, 1997 at 12 noon in the Forum. Using imagination and advanced technology to invent images, poetry and sound, this free event touches on issues of robotics, youth, violence, animation and visions of the apocalypse as we near the next century. The event is organized with youth poetry advocate Alan Kaufman, and William Lynn of Blasthaus, a gallery performance space dedicated to emerging artists in electronic and digital arts.
Survival System Train and Other Sculpture by Kenji Yanobe is made possible in part with the support of The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and media sponsor Channel A.
Center for the Arts Galleries are located at 701 Mission Street (at Third Street) in downtown San Francisco. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Sunday, 11 am to 6 pm (8 pm the first Thursday of every month). Admission is $5 for adults; $3 for seniors, students and youth 16 and under; and FREE for Center for the Arts members. On the first Thursday of every month, gallery admission is FREE to all from 6 to 8 pm, courtesy of the Gap Foundation. Seniors are also offered FREE gallery admission on Thursdays from 11 am to 3 pm.
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