MATSUMOTO Mieko

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MATSUMOTO Mieko

Participating Project	Local Creator Residency Program
Activity Based	Hitachi-Ota(Ibaraki), Japan
City / Place stayed	Tokyo
Period	2023.5 - 2023.7

Purpose of the residency

Matsumoto is concerned there is a disconection between the metropolis and the outside areas, such as inbalances and gaps in economies and oppotunities. Nowadays cities still continue to attract large numbers of people, but she finds it a fragile urban life and social environment. It seems that people in the city feel little the influence of natural conditions. During this program, she research the geology, topography and weather of the city, and consider how they affect the city and its inhabitants in actuality. She also research the narratives unique to the city

Plan during the residency

• Collect date on urban rivers and weather (rainfall) , topography and research with civil engineering experts to goverment organisations, such as river management facilities, and to research institutions
• Research on the construction of urban infrastructures and the history of the workforce behind it
• Discussions and workshops on images and narratives about rain and rivers
• Trial shooting of events derived from research and discussion, using multiple media
• Writing text

Activities during the residency

Research : During her residency at TOKAS, she was interested in the disparities between the metropolis and the rural area, researching water resources, flood control and natural disasters in the city. Under the assumption that water is the power of nations, she attempted to observe the water system in areas around the metropolis. On the other hand, in order to conceive water as commons, she also considered the study of topography and river from the perspective of historical disasters and wars.
Artistic practice : She created prototype of photographic works that overlapped images from these research in a new way. She also created a site-specific prototype using images of war and geography, a prototype of audiovisual installation using images of disaster and river, and exhibited them in Open Studio.

Outcome of the residency

She was able to develop an attitude of working with English and think of ways to transmit her work in other cultures. She was able to work on new outputs regarding photography and video. In the process of prototyping, she was able to explore ways to create works that do not rely on the context of the native language, but rather assume a wider audience.
It was also helpful to learn how artists in each country balance their lives and work, so she wants to participate more in the residency program. She was greatly stimulated by many artists in the studio who were seriously working with their hands and continuing to output every day. She spent a lot of time talking about each other's work with them. In particular, she was reminded of the question, “What are your interests when creating artwork?” Once again, this question made her realize how social environment affects works of artists. She thinks she would not have been able to understand this if she had only been working in Japanese society. She also had the opportunity to work with several artists in preparation for the Open Studio, all of which were experiences that she could not have had in her previous production environment.
As a prospect for future activities, she would like to produce works that can be presented to wider audience, with an eye toward overseas residencies and exhibitions. For this purpose, she would like to actively apply for and realize overseas training programs.

Creator Information