SomoS presents Yokai — A Third Perception, a solo exhibition by Japanese artist Hal Osawa, concluding her Artist-in-Residence program with support from the Yoshino Gypsum Art Foundation. The exhibition centers on through, a multi-screen video installation exploring what can pass between people when the words themselves remain unavailable.
In the piece, Osawa asks participants, “What did you believe in when you were a child?” Each answers in their own language. Unable to understand the spoken content, Osawa follows rhythm, pauses, facial expressions, and gestures, sometimes finding herself nodding or responding without knowing exactly what has been said. The exchange continues nonetheless.
Osawa calls what emerges from this situation “Yokai” (余解): a third perception formed when two people keep communicating despite understanding the encounter differently. She compares it to a ball game in which one person thinks they are playing catch and the other thinks they are playing soccer, yet the ball keeps moving between them.
“Through this work, I am not asking whether something can be understood correctly. Rather, I want to reconsider what it is that makes us feel that we have ‘understood.’”
The videos provide no translations of the participants’ stories. Some viewers may understand a language that remained inaccessible to Osawa; others will encounter the voices through rhythm, tone and bodily expression. Yokai asks how quickly we assume that we understand another person, and whether communication can continue without requiring meanings to coincide.
Opening reception: Tuesday, September 22, 6 - 9 PM
On view: September 23 - 26, Tuesday- Saturday, 2 - 7 PM
For more information, visit https://somos-arts.org/hal-osawa-yokai-a-third-perception/
FREE ENTRY
Event venue
SomoS Arts, Kottbusser Damm 95, 10967 Berlin-Bezirk Neukolln, Germany, Berlin
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