hayate kobayashi’s solo exhibition, “Polyparole” will be held in June. Based on keywords such as “immigrant” and “queerness,” kobayashi will present works through apparatuses, video, multilingual poetry, and podcasts.
BUG, operated by Recruit Holdings Co., Ltd., will present “Polyparole,” a solo exhibition by hayate kobayashi, opening June 26th (Wed.), 2024. After completing his graduate school at Tokyo University of the Arts, kobayashi received a scholarship from the Ezoe Memorial Recruit Foundation in 2020 and was able to realize his study in Berlin. In the meantime, he has won several awards in Japan and is a promising artist in the future. To encourage kobayashi’s upcoming career, BUG will hold his largest solo exhibition to date, including new works.
The title of this exhibition, “Polyparole,” is a word coined by kobayashi, combining “poly-,” meaning “multiple,” and “parole,” which in linguistics means “an act of speech performed by an individual in a specific situation.”
The pandemic of the COVID-19 infection that occurred at the same time as his study abroad deepened racial divisions and conflicts. kobayashi was temporarily unable to return to his home country and experienced a state of exophony* (German for “state of being outside the mother tongue”) in an unknown land, which led him to think about the “stranger.”
One of the works in the exhibition, “Space-in-translation,” was created in response to a conversation with a poet from China’s Sichuan Province who defected to Berlin. The poet describes his exile as “I ran(我跑了).” kobayashi uses these words as words that resonate with different contexts and attempts to stitch the “strangers” together.
In this exhibition, through the exhibited works and events held during the period, you will hear the murmur of several people, based on the keywords that have interested kobayashi in recent years: “exophony,” “immigrant,” and “queerness.” kobayashi, who was exposed to the murmur of people with diverse backgrounds in Berlin, conveys a simple yet powerful message, “The personal is political,” through works created in a variety of media, including apparatuses, video, multilingual poetry, and podcasts.
*Yoko Tawada, “Exophony: Bogo no soto e deru tabi”, 2012, Iwanami Gendai Bunko
About the Exhibition
Exhibition where mutters are born
The works are “multiple mutters,” which is the meaning of the exhibition’s title, “Polyparole.” The podcast series “Süß,” which means “sweet” in German, is a series of mutters on themes such as “immigrant,” “queerness,” and “identity. Through headphones installed in the exhibition space, visitors can enjoy the work as if they are listening to the radio. The word “Süßigkeiten” is a German word meaning “snack,” and it is intended to encourage visitors to enjoy the works in a casual, relaxed manner, as if they are eating a snack.
As a collaboration with BUG Cafe, where mutters are daily generated, a portion of the works will be exhibited in the cafe. In addition, we wish for everyone to feel close to the artworks by bringing drinks from the cafe to a part of the exhibition area to appreciate the artworks.
kobayashi’s first large-scale new work, “Appeartus”
kobayashi creates works based on personal events that has happened to him or what he has felt. “Appeartus” is a new work in the series on exophony and narrative that began in 2021, and deals with the shifting identities of Asian immigrants living in Berlin. The installation consists of a large video projected on the wall and a bicycle-shaped apparatus linked to the video. In the video, kobayashi rides a bicycle equipped with a box-like apparatus that functions as a headlight through the city at night. This apparatus lights up in conjunction with speech. As he drives frantically while talking continuously, words are scattered all over the place. An animation of a poem based on these words will also be exhibited at the venue.
Viewers may be reminded of the “stranger” through the identities of the people in kobayashi’s works.
Events will be held related to mutter and production practice!
During the exhibition, on <July 5th (Fri.)> and < July 19th (Fri)>, we will invite guests Yo Katami, Futoshi Miyagi, and tsu-tsu to mutter and practice production.
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<Date of event＞
July 5th(Fri.), 6:30PM – 8:00PM
Guests: Yo Katami (Owner of bookstore “loneliness books” / graphic designer), Futoshi Miyagi (Contemporary artist)
July 19th (Fri), 6:30PM – 8:00PM
Guest: tsu-tsu (Documentary actor)
Work Images
About the Artist
Born in 1995. Lives and works in Berlin, Germany. Recently graduated from Art and Media at the Berlin University of the Arts. Based on his local research of image studies and media archaeology, kobayashi explores a new form of narrative with moving images and self-made apparatuses. His recent works focus on exophony and its narrative in perspectives of translation and identities.
He completed a Master Program in Film and New Media Studies at the Graduate School of Film and New Media, Tokyo University of the Arts. His work was selected for the New Face Award of the Art Division at the 24th Japan Media Arts Festival in 2021. His recent solo exhibition include: How to Relume Your Mind, Imageforum Cinematheque, Tokyo, Japan (2020); and his work has been included in group exhibition such as: MORE STRANGE THINGS, silent green, Berlin (2024).
Information
2024.6.26WED — 7.21SUN
11:00 — 19:00
*Open until 8:00PM every Friday: June 28th, July 5th, July 12th, and July 19th, 2024
Tuesdays
Free
BUG
