Uno is a somewhat expansive area with artwork spread throughout the area. The artwork is spread throughout the port area with the majority being in the old town district and the wharf area. Uno doesn’t take a lot of time to enjoy the art, but it can take time to get to each piece.
182 – Chinu – the Black Sea Bream of Uno
Chinu – the Black Sea Bream of Uno is a conscientious creation of Yodogawa-Technique. Yodogawa-Technique is a duo that works on creating art from garbage found in local rivers. Chinu is a very interesting artwork and something that must be seen up close. I visited it in the 2013 Setouchi Triennale but for 2016 I decided not to visit it in person because of a large festival and time constraints. I did see it from the ferry and it has evolved somewhat. Because the artwork is exposed to the elements, Yodogawa-Technique had to return and fix some of the parts which made Chinu look different. It was interesting to see and while I don’t regret skipping it, I do feel that I could have had a better feeling of the artwork if I had been closer to it.
- Chinu – The Black Sea Bream of Uno (HinoMaple)
Chinu – the Black Sea Bream of Uno by Yodogawa Technique
183 – Beyond the last stop
Beyond the last stop is a very cool 2016 addition to the Setouchi Triennale by Atsushi Ozawa. In 2013, there was a music artwork where you borrowed a small MP3 player and walked around listening to strange music and audio. This year they kept the same theme but created bicycles! From the description, it seems that he took old bicycles, melted them down a bit and formed new ones with fun designs. There are 10 of them and you can rent them for a day if you’d like. It is 600 yen to rent them with a 2000 yen deposit. It is probably the most interactive artwork of the Triennale.
- Beyond the Last Stop (HinoMaple)
Beyond the last stop by Atsushi Ozawa
184 – Memory of Ship’s Hull
Memory of Ship’s Hull is another Atsushi Ozawa artwork but it has been in Uno for a long time. It is a 2 part piece with one being near where the ferries dock and another near Chinu – the Black Sea Bream of Uno. The piece near the dock is an old Japanese naval anchor and the one closer to Chinu is a giant propeller from an old Norwegian ship. Both objects have other metal works welded to them and both pieces are painted black. In 2013 it was pretty boring but in 2016, with nice vegetation around it, it was more interesting to me.
- Memory of Ship’s Hull (HinoMaple)
Memory of Ship’s Hull by Atsushi Ozawa
185 – Officer BigMac▷Dead Scream▷『Jaku-Jaku-samaⅡ』『Chienron❷』〆
Officer BigMac▷Dead Scream▷『Jaku-Jaku-samaⅡ』『Chienron❷』〆 is a very weird name for an artwork by Takuya Yamashita. The strange name really makes you wonder about the artwork until you see it. It is a real weird piece but at the same time it was really cool. It harks on the 80s style video games with pixelated images as well as how things are in the world. There are 2 locations with one in the old town area and one in a studio past the electronics shop. Simply put, the artist cut holes out of buildings and put them together like a jigsaw puzzle and then he put a design over top. A single paragraph cannot explain what I saw or what I experienced in both locations so you’ll have to read on to understand it.
Officer BigMac▷Dead Scream▷『Jaku-Jaku-samaⅡ』『Chienron❷』〆 by Takuya Yamashita (Old Town Area)
Officer BigMac▷Dead Scream▷『Jaku-Jaku-samaⅡ』『Chienron❷』〆 by Takuya Yamashita (Studio Gallery)
186 – The Sea’s Memory
The Sea’s Memory by Haruyuki Uchida is a pretty standard artwork and it doesn’t really seem to fit in with the other artwork of Uno or the Triennale. It looks like something that can be anywhere, and it is located a good distance from the port. After the 10 minute walk to the park that has the artwork, I was let down by it until I got up close. The shiny wedge on a rock pedestal was far more interesting than I thought it would have been. You really have to get up close to it to appreciate it, but it still didn’t seem to fit in with the festival.
- The Sea’s Memory (HinoMaple)
The Sea’s Memory by Haruyuki Uchida
187 – JR Uno Port Line Art Project
JR Uno Port Line Art Project is an art project by Esther Stocker that transformed the old Uno Station building into a new artwork. The project itself is set to convert a total of 4 stations on the Uno Line (Uno Station, Tsuneyama Station, Bizentai Station, and one more station to be announced). I only had the luxury to enjoy Uno Station and while it is a lovely artwork, it didn’t really speak to me when I was there. I thought it looked nice but nothing special. The artwork is only on the exterior of the building and it would have worked a lot more if the entire station, interior and platform, was also in the same motif.
- JR Uno Port Line Art Project (HinoMaple)
JR Uno Port Line Art Project by Esther Stocker
190 – Stories of 12 Islands: Animation of Sea Wanderings
Stories of 12 Islands: Animation of Sea Wanderings is an amazing work by Masahiro Hasunuma. Unfortunately, the artwork is no longer on Uno after the summer edition as it is moving to a different island for autumn. It will be on Honjima for the autumn edition but if you can’t make it there you can always watch some of the art on Mr. Hasunuma’s personal YouTube channel. The artwork is 12 different flip books with animations for each of the 12 areas of the Setouchi Triennale. Like David Billa, I fell in love with these books and spent a lot of time there. It was amazing to see each of the stories Mr. Hasunuma wanted to tell for each island and he did a great job with it.
Stories of 12 Islands: Animation of Sea Wanderings by Masahiro Hasunuma
Information
- Uno Art Guide (Official Setouchi Triennale Site – English)
- Uno Art Guide (Official Setouchi Triennale Site – Japanese)
- Uno (HinoMaple – From 2013)
- Chinu – the Black Sea Bream of Uno (Setouchi Explorer)
The above is my own personal review of the art in Uno. If you want to be surprised by the art, I recommend that you do not read more than what is written here. Links will follow the single paragraph describing the basics of the artwork when the posts are ready. Please keep an eye on the social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus) for information when they go live. Photos may also give away part of the art, but in this post, they are minimal. Spoiler alerts in individual posts will be given when it is necessary for you to enjoy the art for the first time. If you will not be going to the Setouchi Triennale, feel free to follow the links and read everything and enjoy it as best as you can. Links to individual art reviews will be coming in the following months as soon as possible.