This is a land art project in Toga, Toyama, Japan. The site is vacant land with no artifacts between a mountain and river. And it used to be a river, but it has been reclaimed and is now in its current state. Now there are many insects and animals and there were waterside creatures before.
The project is a land art project, but we also considered it as landscape project.
So, we installed strong geometric shape in a vacant land to create order. The intention was for the place to develop around this.
And we wanted people who experiences the space to respect the earth in a wild natural place.
Life is born from the earth and lives on the earth that has energy, strength and kindness. By digging a hole in the ground and giving people a different perspective, we are strongly aware of the earth and nature that is usually on foot.
At first, we excavated a large area, inserted an architectural structure that could withstand the pressure of the earth, and then filled it in, until only the colors emerged from the soil.
Then we put meaning to the art as “serpent”.
Serpent, as often appears in mythology is a symbol of life and death, and we are sure they swam before when the site was river.
The strong space, object lives as earth mother goddess in the site like Serpent to express the strength of the earth.
Beneath the surface of the earth, we stand on is Mother Earth.
Wear a snake skirt.
Swim the earth.
Grab the mountain.
Here in Toga, many lives coexist with people and live with the earth.
This is a landscape space that reconstructs new relationships with the earth and its life.
Materials Used:
Wall: Paint on Polywood
Floor: Soil in the site
