To begin with, we must try to do things ourselves.
BUG, which is operated by Recruit Holdings Co., Ltd., will hold ,” a solo exhibition by Kenji Chiga, from (Wed.) March 6, 2023. This exhibition is being organized in line with one of BUG’s activity directives, namely “Providing Career Support,”* with the objective of serving as a stepping stone for an artist looking to take their career to the next level.
Chiga won the Grand Prize at the 16th “1_WALL” Photography Competition** in 2017 with his entry “Bird, Night, and then,” which addressed aspects of Indian society such as its caste system, poverty, and its overbearing emphasis on academic credentials. At “1_WALL,” the artist was praised for his perspective, understanding social phenomena in a structured manner, his ability to edit in such a way that blends fiction and non-fiction, and his adroit handling of the photographic medium. As the competition’s Grand Prize winner, he also held his first solo exhibition, “Suppressed Voice,” at Guardian Garden in 2018. In terms of international acclaim, Chiga won the at the 8th Dali International Photography Exhibition in China (2019), was shortlisted for the Luma Rencontres Dummy Book Award Arles at the Rencontres d’Arles international festival of photography in France (2019, 2022), and was named by the British Journal of Photography in its annual list of “Ones To Watch” in 2019—he has exhibited his work, and been recognized, around the world.
Chiga’s practice has been to create work based on social issues close to himself, such as the connection between poverty and suicide, and social , exposing the social structures that cause these problems and the perspectives of those involved. Chiga takes a bird’s-eye view of these problems and the people concerned, and his stance of ensuring neutrality through years of scrupulous research is evident. Underlying this approach are a conscious effort to avoid setting up binary oppositions, and a hope that viewers will gain a sense of their own interest in social issues. His works have come to act as a springboard for viewers to engage their own creativity with respect to society and others.
This exhibition showcases installation work themed around special fraud, a subject that Chiga spent around three years researching since 2019. It addresses both the social structures surrounding the phenomenon and individuals related to it, employing different media including photography and video. The titular series, To begin with, we must try to do things ourselves, consists of portrait photographs of Chiga posing as both fraudsters and their victims. These have been printed on water-soluble paper, which is often used by scam groups to destroy evidence, then sprayed with water. This dissolves and deforms the images beyond recognition, leaving viewers to imagine the faded faces they had shown. Losses due to special fraud peaked in 2014 and had been on a downward trend until 2021, when Chiga first exhibited work on this topic. Over the COVID-19 pandemic, however, the figure began to rise again, with 2022 marking the first uptick in eight years. The works in this exhibition focus on the factors underlying this increase, highlighting how individual lives were affected by societal shifts and the changing times.
*One of BUG’s three activity directives is to provide career support to artists and art workers. We aim to achieve this by hosting the BUG Art Award, organizing exhibitions, and holding workshops and events. Please refer to the “ABOUT” page on our website for more information.
**This competition was organized by Recruit Holdings from 2009 to 2022. “1_WALL” had two sections, Graphics and Photography, each of which was held 25 times. As the predecessor to the BUG Art Award, it served to unearth new talent and propel it out into the world.
About the exhibition
The meaning behind the exhibition title
The exhibition’s title phrase, “To begin with, we must try to do things ourselves,” gives the impression of urging people towards self-initiated problem-solving and self-reliance. When faced with a problem in our everyday life, whether at work, school, or home, most of us likely start by thinking through it ourselves and trying to resolve it somehow, only turning to others if that fails. This order of events seems to be widely shared as the common-sense approach. Chiga too has always valued this attitude of trying to do things himself, both in his life and his artistic practice. However, through witnessing those around him falling into financial hardship during the COVID-19 pandemic, Chiga came to question when and to what extent this idea of “doing things ourselves” should apply. At what point are we allowed to rely on others?
Different people will interpret the message differently, so there will be some who diligently try to do everything by their own means, even in situations that would normally call for help from others or from society at large. There are also social factors that drive people to do this. And it could very well happen that some end up resorting to desperate measures that are against the law.
Viewing this exhibition, visitors will be able to contemplate the ideas and ideologies that underlie today’s society, and the impact that these have on people in different circumstances.
Circuit of Life, the artist’s largest-scale work to date
All works featured are new pieces. Of particular note is Circuit of Life, Chiga’s largest piece to date, which is an experiential installation that visitors can step inside. Modeled after the board game “The Game of Life,” its squares feature “events” based on things that Chiga read or heard during his research on special fraud. Several courses (“life paths”) run along the floor of the exhibition space, sometimes intersecting with one another. This setup, which places side by side the events and experiences of individuals who played different roles in the crime—perpetrators, victims, and other parties—illustrates how our individual lives are separated only by a very fine line, and how the slightest difference in timing or luck can drastically reshape our lives.
Visitors will be able to play the game at the venue by rolling a digital die on their smartphones, so we hope you will give it a try.
About the Artist
Born in 1982, in Shiga Prefecture. He graduated from Osaka University’s School of Engineering Science in 2008. He won the Grand Prize at the 16th “1_WALL” Photography Competition, an Excellence Award at Canon’s 44th New Cosmos of Photography, and the Best Emerging Photographer Award at the 8th Dali International Photography Exhibition. He was also shortlisted for the Luma Rencontres Dummy Book Award Arles at the Rencontres d’Arles international photography festival in France (2019 and 2022). His exhibitions include the 16th “1_WALL” Photography Competition Grand Prize Winner Exhibition “Suppressed Voice” (Guardian Garden, 2018), (Tokyo Photographic Art Museum, 2021), the solo exhibition “Hijack Geni” (Reminders Photography Stronghold, 2022), and the Prix Pictet Japan Award exhibition “Fire & Water” (Tokyo Photographic Art Museum, 2022).
Information
2024.3.6WED — 4.14SUN
11:00 — 19:00
Tuesdays
Free
BUG
Canon Inc.
