BUG SCHOOL：Let's Move Our Body!｜EXHIBITION｜BUG

BUG, operated by Recruit Holdings Co., Ltd. is pleased to present “BUG School: Let’s Move Our Body!” from Wednesday, November 29, 2023, in collaboration with independent curator Kaho Ikeda as a guest curator. This project will provide a venue to introduce several artists at once, with nine artists presenting small exhibitions and various programs.

With the goal of fostering this project as an ongoing effort to open up the possibilities of the art center, we will create opportunities for people to connect with artists’ concepts and creations. It is also a learning opportunity that can be enjoyed by various people, including businesspeople and students who may not have had the opportunity to come into contact with art before.

Artists

Ryo UCHIDA, Mamiko KAKITSUBO, Tappei NOGUCHI, HIRATE, Akari FUJISE, Yuka HOTTA, Kohei MAEDA, Koichi MITSUOKA,Takuya WATANABE

Curator's comment

Art center BUG, which opened in September 2023, is directly connected to Tokyo Station and has a café attached, but we are at the stage of unknowns as to what kind of place it will grow into. As a new possibility for the art center that goes beyond “exhibition and appreciation,” we will collaborate with nine artists born between 1989 and 1999 and present “BUG SCHOOL：Let’s Move Our Body!”, an experimental learning space for 32 days.

The artists participating in this project, created their works with focus on the channel of the body, deepening their diverse worldviews by using the body’s contingencies and unconsciously accumulated sensations as the starting point for their creations, and by reinterpreting their relationships with society, the environment, and others through the medium of the body. In addition to a small exhibition in mixture of past and new works, this program will focus on dialogue with viewers or participatory programs using the body and hands, as a place for learning. In this program, the artists will not present works or techniques in a one-way manner, but rather share with the participants the stories, sensations, and thoughts that exist in the process of creation, aiming to understand each other’s values and ways of thinking.

The title “Let’s Move Our Body!” is intended to express our hope that various resonances will emerge at the newly launched art center BUG through artists’ practices that will move the viewers’ senses and thoughts, and also through the various programs that will be held during the same period. Let’s learn together in this time-limited school that will appear this winter.

*The works exhibited at BUG School will be available for purchase, taking over the charity project that has continued for over 30 years at Creation Gallery G8 and Guardian Garden, which ended its activities in September 2023. This project is an attempt to create an opportunity to understand the historical, political, social, and cultural context behind the artists and their works before purchasing them, and to consider the organic nature of buying and selling artworks.

Kaho IKEDA

Independent Curator

Since 2016, she researches collectives and DIY cultures that have developed from traditional practices and social conditions, mainly in East Asia and Southeast Asia. She horizontally curates shows in Japan and abroad combining exhibitions, performances, and educational programs. Her recent exhibitions include Recipe Library (Rumah Budaya Sikukeluang / INTA-NET KYOTO, 2022), Open Park MINE: Our Street Style Play (Yamanaka Suplex annex MINE, 2023). Ikeda was previously an assistant curator at Mori Art Museum, Tokyo and became independent in the spring of 2023.

Information

Date

2023.11.29WED — 2024.1.14SUN

Opening Hours

11:00 — 19:00

Closed

Tuesdays, and from December 25 (Mon), 2024 through January 4 (Thu)

Admission

Free

Organized

BUG

Ryo UCHIDA

Born in Shizuoka Prefecture. Graduated from Musashino Art University, Department of Oil Painting.

Using shapes and colors extracted from accidental events and phenomena, he creates works that aim to create new relationships between images and things. He is currently based in Nagano and Tokyo, Japan.

Selected Exhibitions:

2023 “NEWoMan ART Window” NEWoMan Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan

2022 “ATAMI ART GRANT” HOTEL ACAO, Shizuoka, Japan

2022 Ryo Uchida Solo Exhibition “Night”, Tsutsujigaoka Atelier, Tokyo, Japan

Awards:

2021 Jury Prize, Haruhi Painting Triennial (selected by Meruro Washida)

2019 Second Prize, NONIO ART WAVE AWARD

Mamiko KAKITSUBO

Graduated from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music in 2023 with a major in sculpture. He produces sculptures on the theme of memory and masks.

Selected Exhibitions:

2022 “Comite Colbert Award 2022-The beauty of imperfection” The University Art Museum,

Tokyo University of the Arts

2021 “The 24th Graphic 1_WALL Exhibition”, Guardian Garden, Tokyo, Japan

2019 “WALLAby”, GINZA ATRIUM GINZASIX Ginza Tsutaya, Tokyo, Japan

Awards:

2022 Grand Prix, Comite Colbert Award

2021 Finalist, 24th Graphic “1_WALL”

Tappei NOGUCHI

Born in 1992. Art explorer. Creating ways to encounter.

The artist’s activities focus on the passing through of the world separated by meaning and purpose, and the momentary congruence that occurs between these disparate things, each existing in its own way.

His main activities include “Pacific Ocean and Tire Pulling,” in which he pulls a tire and walks around the islands from the viewpoint of “Yaponesia,” the Japanese archipelago as a Pacific island: in Taiwan, Yakushima, Tanegashima, and Amami-Oshima. The “Eight Octopus Mikoshi” presents an “octopus” motif, in which each of its eight arms has its own independent intelligence, and opens up questions about human beings: in Oita, Fukuoka, Hyogo, Tokyo, Shizuoka, Chinmi, and Yamaguchi.

Selected Projects:

2023 “I want to meet interesting people!” Arts Council Shizuoka, Shizuoka, Japan

2022 “Toyooka Theater Festival” Takeno Beach, Hyogo, Japan

2021 “Meet the Artists” Mori Art Museum, Tokyo, Japan

HIRATE

1997 Born in Kanagawa, during the summer

2007 Holds sports motivation

2011 Broken heart for sports

2013 Has no friends, finding ways to play alone

2023 I have friendly friends, lots of ways to play alone.

Awarded the Grand Prix at the 23rd Graphic “1_WALL”.

In his solo exhibition, he exhibited human-shaped objects made of dyed cloth and cotton under the theme of living with someone who does not exist.

Selected Exhibitions:

2021 “The 23rd Graphic 1_WALL Exhibition” Guardian Garden, Tokyo, Japan

2022 Solo exhibition, “Fists Filled with Cotton”, Guardian Garden, Tokyo, Japan

2022 “P.O.N.D 2022 IN DOUBT: Thinking About What You Cannot See” Shibuya PARCO,Tokyo

Awards:

2021 Grand Prix, The 23rd Graphic “1_WALL”

Akari FUJISE

By capturing the traces that are ubiquitous in our daily lives, she attempts to construct a new language for understanding the world.

While working with drawing as the core of his work, he is also interested in extending the concept of drawing and is involved in researching contemporary drawing as a researcher.

Selected Exhibitions:
2023 “Where the kiss will be tomorrow” BLOCK HOUSE, Tokyo, Japan

2022 “Songs to make the dust dance on the beams” UNTITLED space, Tokyo, Japan

2021 “I heard the quiet dismantling sound” Gallery33, Tokyo, Japan

Yuka HOTTA

Born in Aichi Prefecture. Currently enrolled in the Department of Painting, Graduate School of Fine Arts, Tokyo University of the Arts. Her works are mainly in the field of painting and installation. As if folding his body into a support, she gives various forms to his own physical sensation, and then laminates them. Or, as if to get out of the support and stretch the body, she makes something like a body awkwardly in space.

Currently, while incorporating reproduction media such as handheld scanners and silk screens, she is attempting to construct new physical representations by capturing and amplifying her own body and actions in a multilayered manner.

Selected Exhibitions:

2023 “Jointless” Kameido Art Center, Tokyo, Japan

2023 “Uraraka Painting Festival” The 5th Floor, Tokyo, Japan

2022 “HANCO Exhibition” Flat River Gallery, Tokyo, Japan

Awards:

2021 Finalist, 23rd Graphic “1_WALL

Kohei MAEDA

With the climate and memories of the Kii Peninsula, where he has his roots, and the philosophy of Minakata Kumagusu, a naturalist from the same region, as his foundation, he works on the theme of “the relationship and distance between nature and people”. In recent years, he has turned his attention to natural landforms, ecosystems, cultures, and beliefs in Japan and abroad, creating works ranging from fieldwork to photography, video, performance, and installation.

He questions boundaries, touches the invisible, and develops physical acts and processes, sometimes like a festival. Recently, he has become interested in rivers, and has been active in cross-disciplinary activities, including the establishment of the “Takasegawa River Monitoring Club” to observe the ecology of artificial rivers.

Selected Exhibitions:

2022 Solo exhibition “Lit-up Mountain, Astral Foothills”, International Art Center Aomori, Aomori, Japan

2021 “Kinan Art Week 2021”, Minakata Kumagusu Memorial Museum, Wakayama, Japan

2021 “Gunma Biennale for Young Artists 2021” The Museum of Modern Art, Gunma

Koichi MITSUOKA

My grandfather gave me the name so that all the letters would be symmetrical, and my mother came up with the reading. (It could have been “Yukikazu.”) I wanted to make a music video for Hikaru Utada, and with that sole intention in mind, I entered an art college but was only accepted into the architecture department. I want to create something, just like how Akiko Yano sings, or Ranjatai performs comedy. What kind of person was the first person to make Jomon earthenware?

Selected Exhibitions:

2023 “Rokko Meets Art Art Walk 2023 beyond”, Mt. Rokko, Hyogo, Japan

2023 Solo exhibition, “Above and Beyond Absolute: 120%,” Guardian Garden, Tokyo, Japan

2021 Solo Exhibition “extraordinary__ordinary” BLOCK HOUSE, Tokyo, Japan

Awards:

2021 Excellence Award, The 44th New Cosmos of Photography (selected by Daisuke Yokota)

2021 Mika Kuraya Prize, Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art project “Doko x Deza”.

Takuya WATANABE

In 2016, he completed the Graduate School of Fine Arts at Tokyo University of the Arts. He then completed Arts Initiative Tokyo [AIT] Artist Practice 2016/2017. He creates video installations that paradoxically reveal the structure and power of society while addressing the circumstances of certain individuals he has encountered through research and interviews.

Selected Exhibitions:

2023 “As Above, So Below” (TOKAS Residence 2023: Exhibition of the Results), TOKAS Hongo, Tokyo, Japan

2022 “Meet the Residents / Open School #5” WIELS, Brussels

Experience in Artist-in-residence, at WIELS Residency Programme (Brussels).

Awards:

2023 Second-prize, CAFx FILM MOSAIC

2016 Jury Prize, Art Award Tokyo Marunouchi

List of Works

"BUG SCHOOL：Let's Move Our Body!" List of Works

PDF

About the purchase of exhibited artworks

The majority of the exhibited works will be sold during the exhibition. The proceeds from this sale of artwork, excluding the artist’s income, shipping costs and other expenses, will be donated to “Save the Children” to support children of today and the future. In addition, a “participatory program” by nine participating artists will be held as an opportunity for visitors to learn more about the artists and the background of their artworks before purchasing them. It is also an attempt to consider the organic nature of buying and selling artworks.

About the price of artwork

Please confirm the work list for prices.

List of Works

PDF

How to purchase the artwork

(1) Purchase application

Please read through the purchase application form, and upon approval, we will proceed with the purchase of the artwork. If you have any concerns in purchasing, please contact our reception staff. Those who have applied for consideration of purchasing an artwork may hold the right to purchase the artwork for six business days from the date of application. If you do not purchase the artwork within the validity period, your purchase rights will be automatically canceled. Thank you for your understanding.

(2) Purchase

Payment can only be made on site. Please come to the BUG reception desk and pay during the exhibition term. Online sales and bank transfers are not available.

*Cash, credit cards (Visa/Mastercard®/JCB/American Express/Diners Club/Discover),

Electronic money (iD/QUICPay), transportation IC Card, and UnionPay are accepted. Only one-time payment is available.

Valid only for payment in person

*Payments made by the person himself/herself are valid. In principle, payment by proxy is not acceptable.

With the implementation of the invoice system from October 1st, 2023, the handling of receipts for artworks purchased at BUG will be as follows. We appreciate your understanding.

・Since the artworks sold at BUG fall under the category of consignment sales, in which we sell artworks at the request of the consigning artist, we are unable to issue a qualified simplified invoice in our company name.

・We are also unable to issue qualified simple invoices on behalf of our clients because all of our consignees are non-qualified businesses. We apologize for the inconvenience and appreciate your understanding.

・Receipts can be issued upon request.

(3) Reserve a pick-up date

The artwork will be handed over at BUG.

Please select the desired date/time on the pick-up date and time reservation form.

・2024.1.16 tue , 1.17 wed , 1.18 thu , 1.19 fri , 1.20 sat

① ＜14:00 – 16:00＞、②＜16:00 – 18:00＞、③＜18:00 – 20:00＞

※As for to ＜11:00 – 12:00>, it is selectable only on Saturday.

(4) Pick-up of the artwork

The artwork will be handed over at BUG.

Please select the desired date/time on the pick-up date and time reservation form.

・2024.1.16 tue , 1.17 wed , 1.18 thu , 1.19 fri , 1.20 sat

① ＜14:00 – 16:00＞、②＜16:00 – 18:00＞、③＜18:00 – 20:00＞

※As for to ＜11:00 – 12:00>, it is selectable only on Saturday.

Q&A

Can I purchase the artwork and take it home with me on the spot?
A. You cannot take it home on the spot. Please reserve a pick-up date and time at the time of payment, and receive it at BUG on the reserved date.

You cannot take it home on the spot. Please reserve a pick-up date and time at the time of payment, and receive it at BUG on the reserved date.

Is it possible to purchase multiple artworks?

Yes, it is possible.

Can I hold on to an artwork I am thinking of purchasing?

It is possible to temporarily hold the right to purchase an artwork. If you wish to temporarily hold the right to purchase an artwork, please visit the venue and tell the receptionist that you would like to apply to purchase an artwork.

You may hold the right to purchase the artwork for 6 business days from the date of application. If you do not purchase within the validity period, your purchase rights will be automatically canceled. Thank you for your understanding.

How can I check the status of available artworks?

The latest information on available artworks will be updated on the website at 1:00 p.m. daily. Please check the information on the artworks before visiting BUG.

Can I ask questions about artworks before I buy it?

Yes it is possible. Please ask the staff at the venue or contact bug.info@r.recruit.co.jp.

Please note that it may take time for us to reply by email.

Can I speak directly with the artist prior to purchase?

Yes, it is possible. If the artist is present at the venue, you can have a conversation with them. You will be able to learn more about the artworks and artists by participating in the participatory programs by the nine artists.

Can I negotiate the price of the artwork?

The purchase price is non negotiable. Please consider your purchase at the price listed on the work list.

Can I cancel my order after purchase?

Cancellations cannot be made after purchase. Please be sure to confirm the condition of the artwork and questions you may have before purchasing.

Is there parking available?

BUG does not have a parking lot. Please use public transportation or metered parking spots nearby.

Can I ask a proxy to purchase and receive my artwork?

Purchase and pick-up is limited to the purchaser. As a rule, we cannot accept purchases or pick-up of artwork by a proxy.

After purchasing, I checked the artwork at home and found that it was damaged. Can I exchange, return, or get a refund after purchase?

No exchanges, returns, or refunds are allowed after purchase. Some artworks may have slight stains or scratches from the production process, so please check the actual artwork at the exhibition venue before considering your purchase.

Also, some artworks are delicately processed. Please handle them with care.

Is contribution deduction available?

The proceeds from this sale of artwork, excluding the artist’s income, shipping costs and other expenses, will be donated to “Save the Children”, but we do not offer contribution deduction.

For inquiries not listed above, please contact bug.info@r.recruit.co.jp.