museum

Suzu Theater Museum: The Ark of Light

Suzu Theater Museum:
The Ark of Light

The museum in the converted gymnasium of the old municipal Seibu Elementary School in the Otani district of Suzu City in Ishikawa Prefecture is one like no other before it: a museum to preserve, research, and display folk art collected throughout the city in harmony with serving as a gallery to exhibit works by modern artists.
The concept for the Suzu Theater Museum originated with “Suzu’s Great Clearance” project, a gathering of folk art and household items that had been gathering dust in storerooms throughout the city and subsequently preserved and given new value as artworks, an unprecedented undertaking. Born from this unique idea, Suzu Theater Museum sheds light on a new aspect of Okunoto’s lifestyle culture. It also raises an essential question of the deep connection between how art and local culture interact and how folk material is collected and preserved.

“Suzu Theater Museum: The Ark of Light” began with the opening of OKU-NOTO TRIENNALE 2020+.
The museum in the converted gymnasium of the old municipal Seibu Elementary School in the Otani district of Suzu City in Ishikawa Prefecture is one like no other before it: a museum to preserve, research, and display folk art collected throughout the city in harmony with serving as a gallery to exhibit works by modern artists. The concept for the Suzu Theater Museum originated with “Suzu’s Great Clearance” project, a gathering of folk art and household items that had been gathering dust in storerooms throughout the city and subsequently preserved and given new value as artworks, an unprecedented undertaking. Born from this unique idea, Suzu Theater Museum sheds light on a new aspect of Okunoto’s lifestyle culture. It also raises an essential question of the deep connection between how art and local culture interact and how folk material is collected and preserved.

Breathing Life into Folk Art

民具に命が吹き込まれるまで。

Breathing Life into Folk Art

01

Preservation/Collection

The OKU-NOTO TRIENNALE’s “Great Clearance” gathered many household items that collected dust in houses throughout the city. “Clearance Sale” is a word used when shops shut down. Along with depopulation and aging, “home clearances” where innumerable familiar household objects remain are also increasing. The artists, local supporters, and staff cleaned and transported these storehouse items.

02

Research/Organization

The number of items collected from this significant clearance amounted to 1500 pieces. Information regarding these household items was gathered by asking each donor about their memories related to the articles. Recounting memories of their ancestors occasionally brought tears to their eyes. The staff subsequently cataloged each item with the data collected and its measurements.

03

Research/Production

Once the artists arrived, they carried out a survey, which included interviewing each owner of these household items throughout Suzu. They then contemplated displaying the pieces as art by integrating them into the local landscape.
The project is not from a single artist’s perspective but through the multilateral views of 8 participants who gathered information about the region and subsequently, directly or indirectly, searched for ways to incorporate it into their work.

04

Application/Presentation

The artists began by examining the folk art and household items in storage at the Otani Day Care Center. Through their perspective, each artist considered the background stories and transformed the folk art and household items into works of art. These works of art are on exhibit as: “Suzu Theatre Museum: The Ark of Light.”

01

Preservation/Collection

02

Research/Organization

03

Research/Production

04

Application/Presentation

PROGRAM

1

「Soilstory 」

bacilli <Japan>

Soilstory (formerly World Dirt Association)〈Japan〉Installation artwork with video anditems collected in the “Great Clearance” based on traditional farming “Aenokoto” (banquet ritual) with local residents’ “soil memories.”

2

「Forest for gathering」

　Yuki Okawa〈Japan〉

Using old kiriko and ropes made by braiding torn pieces of used clothing,
the artist created a plush forest-like space teeming with memories.

3

「Drifters」

　OBI〈Japan〉

By meticulously arranging a collection of countless utensils in a space reminiscent of a deep storehouse, this installation gives you a taste of Okunoto’s rich history and food culture.

4

「Sea of Argonauts」

　Yoshitaka Nanjo〈Japan〉

Images projected onto a wooden boat and an old piano arranged on a layer of sand
dug up from Suzu’s ancient stratum —the afterglow of memories associated with land and possessions bubbles up to the surface.

5

「After reading ,Looking at there,」

　 Miyuki Takenaka〈Japan〉

An individual’s diary from the “Great Clearance” gives us a glance into the past and present. Aimlessly adrift, the story floats along like a revolving lantern.

05

「After reading ,Looking at there,」

　Miyuki Takenaka〈Japan〉

An individual’s diary from the “Great Clearance” gives us a glance into the past and present. Aimlessly adrift, the story floats along like a revolving lantern.

6

「The missing shade 59-1」
「Seascape （Suzu）」「Untitled」

　Saori Miyake〈Japan〉

This projected image installation was created by arranging old boat parts in a space superimposed by photographs and photograms of boats from the past and present.

7

「Linger quietly」

　Ayako Kuno〈Japan〉

Chips and cracks of battered old farming equipment enhanced with delicately sculpted metal objects evoke Suzu’s agricultural landscape that extended over many generations.

8

「Vowel / Mistpouffer」「Sea clouds」

　Masaya Hashimoto〈Japan〉

Clay collected from former roof tile factories and bones from whales that link together memories of the primeval sea invite you to recall Suzu’s pristine landscape that prevails today along with its history.

Photo：Keizo Kioku

MEMBER

director/superintendent  Furamu Kitagawa
curation/staging  Yoshitaka Nanjo
Folklore and Culture Advisor  Kiyoshi Kawamura（National Museum of Japanese History）
architectural renovation/space design  Yamagishi Aya（cycle architects）
music  Umitaro Abe
special lighting  Yasuhito Suzuki（ＯＢＩ）
modeling/direction support  Takuya Kamiike
video recording  Eizo Workshop
preservation and utilization of folk materials adviser Kawabe Sakiko (National Museum of Japanese History)
graphic/merchandise/exterior neon design KIGI

Suzu Theatre Museum Annex

A 5-minute drive from Suzu Theatre Museum: The Ark of Light.
Otani Day Care Center, the storage location for all the folk art, was transformed into a new space now used both for storage and display. With its research and use of folk art, this is an experimental facility in search of the true nature of what a museum should be.

Opening hours
9:30am - 5pm

Admission fee
Adults/¥300
Elementary-High School students/¥200

Suzu Theater Museum: The Ark of Light

Suzu Theater Museum: The Ark of Light

Breathing Life into Folk Art

民具に命が吹き込まれるまで。

Breathing Life into Folk Art

01

Preservation/Collection

02

Research/Organization

03

Research/Production

04

Application/Presentation

01

Preservation/Collection

02

Research/Organization

03

Research/Production

04

Application/Presentation

PROGRAM

1

「Soilstory 」

2

「Forest for gathering」

3

「Drifters」

4

「Sea of Argonauts」

5

「After reading ,Looking at there,」

05

「After reading ,Looking at there,」

6

「The missing shade 59-1」「Seascape （Suzu）」 「Untitled」

7

「Linger quietly」

8

「Vowel / Mistpouffer」「Sea clouds」

MEMBER

Suzu Theatre Museum Annex

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Suzu Theater Museum:
The Ark of Light

「The missing shade 59-1」
「Seascape （Suzu）」「Untitled」