FEATURE| The identity of magma, an outlandish artist unit that handles the FUJIYAMAX store.
The identity of magma, an outlandish artist unit that handles the FUJIYAMAX store .
Have you visited the "FUJIYAMAX Shop" pop-up event currently being held at "JOURNAL STANDARD"? The event is a collaborative project with the artist unit magma, whose recent exhibition at Laforet Harajuku was a great success. The event is a collaborative project with magma, an artist unit that recently held an exhibition at Laforet Harajuku that was a great success. In this issue, we asked the two members of magma to talk about their creative process and the highlights of the exhibition. How did they come up with their outlandish worldview? We also take a closer look at the origins of their work.
magma / Artist Unit An artist unit formed in 2008 by Jun Sugiyama (photo on right) and Kenichi Miyazawa (photo on left). They form their own unique worldview by using scrap wood, motorized equipment, resin, and other materials and combining them by hand. In addition to creating artworks, they also do client work such as scenography, and have created music videos for Yuzu, designed tour titles, and created stage sets. He has also created music videos for artists such as Kaela Kimura, Sakanaction, and Kyary Pamyu Pamyu.
The trigger was my mentor's words, "It's more fun if you don't get a job.
Does magama have a concept for its activities?
cryptomeria forestNot really. I just realized that I had created this kind of worldview.
Miyazawa. We make our works by combining objects with objects, mainly from scrap wood. We have a lot of such waste materials in our atelier, and we look at them and think, "What should we do with them?
cryptomeria forestI am not conscious of trying to create something eccentric, but I am conscious of how to create an unusual form by combining things that I have seen before. For example, a sign pole in a barbershop may look ordinary when viewed alone, but when combined, it is transformed into an object that cannot be overlooked.
MiyazawaWhether it is a sign pole or a street sign , we have always liked this kind of thing.
What was it that led you two to start working as magma in the first place?
Miyazawa. I worked with Sugiyama on my graduation project at university. That was the beginning of magma.
cryptomeria forestA professor in my college seminar told me, "After graduation, the two of you should form a company. From that time on, we named the company magma, and already began to work consciously as a team.
MiyazawaThe professor was a stage designer for the Ceiling Pier, which was presided over by Shuji Terayama, and he is a man who has lived without ever finding a job. . He told me, "It's more fun if you don't get a job. . He also told me, "Make works out of garbage. He said, "You don't have to spend a lot of money to make a good work of art . He is the kind of person who never does anything out of the ordinary. He was always doing sharp things, and we were greatly influenced by him.
Does the name magma mean anything to you?
MiyazawaNo, I don't. . . I was originally in a five-member unit called the Bombers when I was in college. So I thought, "Let's go with the boiling type this time, too" (laughs).
. had a yearning for independent activities.
You said that you both started out in college. Did you start to develop your current style when you were working on your graduation project?
MiyazawaWe both like things. We both like toys. We both have the tendency to collect such things, and that is how we started creating something.
Is it like building plastic models when you were little?
cryptomeria forestThere may be a similar feeling to that. However, it is not interesting to build things according to a blueprint. I am from Shizuoka, where there were many plastic model factories. There were often plastic model festivals, and I myself had many plastic models when I was a child.
What you are doing is the same as MAGMA (laughs). Did you also play like that, Mr. Miyazawa?
Miyazawa. I am not a plastic modeler. I have an older sister and a younger sister, and we used to play with them by putting Ultraman in a Rika-chan doll kitchen set and dressing him up in Rika-chan clothes. The size was perfect for them (laughs).
It is very perverse (laughs).
MiyazawaI don't like to walk down a straight road. . I'm attracted to things that are out of the ordinary. . Even with mini 4WD cars, I wasn't interested in making them go faster. . I was more the type to pursue visual uniqueness.
cryptomeria forest. I was the type of person who wanted to pursue both speed and visuals.
Even if the two of you have something in common in that you don't go for the straight and narrow, are there any differences in your personalities?
MiyazawaThey are totally different. In Mario Kart, I am the type that drives Donkey and Bowser around. I'm a power driver (laughs).
cryptomeria forestI'm a Sawtooth or Yoshi , a small, roundabout type of guy.
Thank you , for the clear analogy (laughs).
cryptomeria forestBoth of us have different personalities, but that's OK. It's like we complement each other in what we don't have.
What influences your expression?
cryptomeria forest. I was influenced by the backstreet brands of the 90s. I liked the activities of creating a brand from scratch, printing T-shirts at night, and selling them the next day. I thought that was cool. I thought it was cool, the energy, the way he would do anything.
MiyazawaI really admired such independent activities. I am from Yamanashi Prefecture, and a certain backwoods brand made T-shirts with a grape motif printed on them exclusively for Yamanashi. I also sympathized with their spirit of service.
. The moment when something good is created beyond the boundaries of the imagination is an emotional moment.
I would like to ask you about your production. Where do you collect the scrap wood for your works?
Miyazawa. from all sorts of places. The most exciting part is when I negotiate and get it in the city.
cryptomeria forestWe go to people's houses and negotiate directly with them (laughs). (Laughs.) "Can you give me this?" (laughs).
MiyazawaRecently I got a sign for a pachinko parlor. There was a pachinko parlor on the street I always pass, and I kept looking at the sign and thinking, "I like that one. Then one day, the store went out of business and started to be demolished. So I gathered up my courage and asked if I could have the sign.
But when you got the billboard, you didn't have a plan for what kind of work you were going to make, did you?
Miyazawa. Yes, that's right. After I get things, I think, "Now what shall I make? But I don't prepare a blueprint.
How do you decide when the work is complete?
MiyazawaI can't put it into concrete words, but I get an image of what I want to achieve when I am in the process of creating a work. Sometimes it is completed when I get as close to that image as possible, and sometimes it is not.
And when they don't?
MiyazawaIt's like when you take a work that you thought was finished, turn it upside down, and it turns out even better (laughs). (Laughs.) It is great when something is created that was not what I had in mind, and the quality of the finished product is so high that it looks as if it were created by a completely different person. I created the work, but it is as if someone completely different had created it. I am very moved when something beyond my imagination is created.
Sugiyama-san, do you have a standard for completion?
cryptomeria forestLike Miyazawa, I can't really put it into words. 10 years have passed since I started working as magma, but I think that in the past, I used to make more complicated and elaborate works. However, that has changed recently. It is not enough to be flashy, nor is it enough to make something messy. It is not enough to just make something flashy or messy, but to pursue something more hidden inside.
What does that mean?
cryptomeria forest. I feel that we are becoming more conscious of the way things are put together, their visual beauty, the aura that makes you want to touch them, and the accuracy of the work as a piece of art.
MiyazawaAdding various ingredients, simmering, and finally making something tasty . That's what it's all about, right?
cryptomeria forestLike a dry curry (laughs). Maybe that's what I mean.
I am attracted to the sound of "Fujiyama".
The name "FUJIYAMAX Shop," which is a collaboration project with Journal Standard, also reminds me of magma.
MiyazawaThe Journal gave us the idea of creating a fictional store. Since we are from Yamanashi and Shizuoka, we have strong feelings for Mt. Fuji. We had always felt a mutual attraction to the sound of "Fujiyama.
cryptomeria forestIt is Japanese, but it can also be used as a foreign language. We were talking about how unique that is.
MiyazawaIt seems that a store called "Fujiyama Shop" already exists. So I added an "X" at the end because I thought it would be better not to have the same name. I added the "X" at the end because I thought it would be better not to wear it.
(magma × JOURNAL STANDARD) bag + key holder ¥7,000+TAX
*Bags come in pink, yellow, and gray . Key chains are available in assorted colors.
face towel ¥2,700 + tax, key chain from left to right ¥2,600 + tax, ¥2,600 + tax, ¥2,600 + tax, ¥2,700 + tax
What are some of the highlights of this project?
cryptomeria forestThe fixtures, furniture, and key chains are all handmade, and I want people to feel that as they look at them.
MiyazawaA total of 420 key chains were made for this project. . We put our thoughts and feelings into each one, and even though they are small items, we want you to feel those feelings.
Are there any particular aspects of the space presentation that you focused on?
cryptomeria forestChristmas is usually expressed in red and green, isn't it? This time, I used fluorescent colors and made it not look like Christmas at all (laughs). (Laughs.) What I am expressing is Christmas, but I think the exquisite way in which it does not look like Christmas is unique, and I hope people will find it interesting.
I'd like to ask you about your artwork, and I found your work with the bust of former President John F. Kennedy to be unique.
cryptomeria forestThat was made by combining quite a few different things. The bust of Kennedy, the hands are Frankenstein figurines, and the American flag is a water bottle. The bottom pedestal is made from the base of a fruit plate. The parts from the shoulders to the arms I made myself.
. As for furniture, there are many motifs that make you look twice. For example, there is a dog's head on the armrest of a chair, or what appears to be its body on the leg of a table.
cryptomeria forestAs you said, that was originally one dog object.
MiyazawaGood ingredients can be used in a variety of dishes. Just as a good chef does not waste ingredients, we try to use what we can. It is also interesting to look for things like, "I think this part is a part of that piece I saw earlier.
The "BRUCE LEE" painted on the back of the chairs and the "KING KONG" on the table are also surrealistic.
MiyazawaIt doesn't really mean anything (laughs). . it just happens to be the word that fits the space.
What do you want visitors to feel through this exhibition?
cryptomeria forestI'd like to show that there is such a way of expressing Christmas... (laughs).
MiyazawaI would be happy if people knew that I make a lot of small pieces as well.
Finally, what are your goals for the future?
cryptomeria forestWe had a big event at the Laforet exhibition for the 10th anniversary, but I would like to hold the exhibition in a bigger and wider place.
Miyazawa. I am the same way. I want to create something that will greatly exceed the expectations of the audience. Last time, the venue consisted of two floors, but I would like to do it in a place where people can go around in a circle. In order to do that, though, I would have to create a lot of works (laughs).
FUJIYAMAX Shop Holding period: December 25 (Monday) Stores:All JOURNAL STANDARD stores *Window display of new objects is only available at Omotesando and Shinjuku stores.
JOURNAL STANDARD Omotesando Address: 6-7-1 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo Phone: 03-6418-7961 Open: 11:00 - 20:00 / Open daily *New furniture and official magma goods other than collaboration items are also available for sale.
JOURNAL STANDARD Shinjuku Store Address: 4-1-7 Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo Phone: 03-5367-0175 Open: 11:30 - 21:00 (11:00 - 21:00 on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays) / Open year-round