"Wild Dog" Nao Motoe January 2011, 1 - January 4, 2011
Venue: Art Gallery T+
Date: December 2011, 1 - January 4, 2011
Exhibitor:
Nanao Motoe (2nd year, Sculpture major, College of Art and Design)
A howl on a full moon night.
T+review
I was taken in by the title. I don't really like complicated things (in fact I hate them), so I'm drawn to straightforward things. This straightforward title had me very excited even before the exhibition started.
Two pure white dog sculptures, emaciated but well-toned. The dogs are carefully, yet vigorously and roughly fleshed, and you can see the artist's passion and love for the work. The dogs howl, looking up at the sky, seem more "weak" than "strong." This was quite surprising, perhaps because my image of a "wild dog" was of a robust and violent beast. Wild dogs, who are always on the edge hunting prey during the day, show a sad side on a moonlit night. Even at that moment, they are certainly "wild dogs." It is easy to feel the moon floating in the night sky ahead of their gaze. I follow their gaze and see the full moon looking down on the dogs.
There were several other small works on display in the gallery, and one that caught my eye was a wire cage with beautiful butterflies fluttering about like they had jumped out of an illustrated book. The butterflies, trapped in a two-dimensional world, were fluttering around in the cage.
On the other wall, a huge butterfly was hanging with its wings spread. It was so intricately and meticulously made that it could be mistaken for the real thing. I knew that the artist loved insects, but I was amazed at how much he loved them!
Leaving the gallery, it was just before dusk, neither bright nor dark. I found the artist sitting alone on a bench.
"That butterfly looks real."
"Oh, that's real."
I was even more amazed.
(Kaori Muto)
