Tadashi Kawamata

This exhibition at Mulier Mulier Gallery, Brussels, features the work of Tadashi Kawamata, a contemporary artist known for his sculptural installations. Kawamata utilizes everyday materials like wooden pallets and construction planks to explore the interplay between socio-economic conditions and architectural forms. His practice, which evolved from oil painting to site-responsive constructions, addresses themes of urban impermanence, ecological vulnerability, and the relationship between human civilization and the natural world.

The presented works, assembled from wood, investigate the intersection of human-made structures and nature. Series such as "Landscape" depict terrain through painted surfaces with protruding wooden fragments, creating a "landscape-archive" of human-environment interactions. The "Dam Project Plan" series uses the dam motif to examine human intervention in natural forces, while "Under Construction" panels visualize the ongoing process of building and repair. Sculptures like "Nest with Tree" and "Tree Hut at Mons" feature natural tree trunks supporting wooden platforms, suggesting rudimentary shelters. "Corner Piece" sculptures integrate into the gallery's architecture, transforming overlooked spaces into provisional structures that also comment on housing precarity and belonging.