“On March 11th, 2011, while I was staying in Japan for a residency program, eastern Japan was attacked by a magnitude-nine earthquake. The tsunami caused by the earthquake wiped out many villages and towns along the coast, and serious damage was done to Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant. Since that day, tragic photographs appeared on the cover of the newspaper every day. This work is my response to seeing that every day. My intention was to let the new sprouts shoot out from the surface of the newspapers that document the tragic stories. Even when the whole country is shaken by the disaster, time passes, spring comes and new lives start.”

Yuken Teruya received his BFA from Tama Art University (Tokyo) and an MFA from the School of Visual Arts. He has exhibited at the Guggenheim Museum, NYC; P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center, NYC; 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa, Japan; Josée Bienvenu Gallery, NYC; Shoshana Wayne Gallery, Santa Monica, CA; Murata and Friends Gallery, Berlin; Hong Kong Arts Center; and Ueno Royal Art Museum, Tokyo. Last year, he was in the Fourth Moscow Biennale and will participate in the 18th Sydney Biennale in 2012. Born in Okinawa, Japan, Teruya lives and works in New York City.

Minding My Own Business: Voices, 2012
Newspapers
Dimensions variable
Courtesy of Shoshana Wayne Gallery

http://www.yukenteruyastudio.com