Signaling Water: Multi-Species Migration and Displacement
Collaborated with artist Robin Lasser to develop several pieces for the City as Nature Festival, hosted in the port village Kitakagaya in Osaka, Japan. The series includes maritime-inspired artist flags, location specific flags created by several artists around the world, and a print catalog that contains documentation of each artwork and event.
Flag Designs and Exhibitions
I worked with Robin to design several flags for the series; the designs are based on the maritime flags referencing the International Code of Signals (ICS) and topics related to water and migration.
In preparation for the exhibition in Japan alongside other international artists from Japan, I designed and screenprinted on two kimono coats that were showcased as 'wearable' flags and modeled for both photoshoots and musical performances. Both of these are focused on topics of water in Japan.
I also utilized the same sea life imagery for a hand-made flag, and was in charge of sewing a majority of the flags from the US artists, including San Jose State and Washburn students.
For the exhibition in Osaka, dozens of these flags and other artworks from artists around the world were hung in various rooms and overhead spaces at千鳥文化 (Chidori Bunka). The flags were showcased as a traveling show in several cities around the world including: Albany Bulb in Oakland (California), Sorbonne University in Paris (France), Chidori Bunka in Osaka (Japan), and at the OSU Museum (Oklahoma).
Workshops
Several workshops were hosted in Osaka for participants to create haikus using Google search results using topics relating to water as inspiration for the haiku and design. I was the main assistant for leading participants through the Google Dada haiku making process and distributing materials.
The flags created from the workshop were strung together and carried in a local parade around the Kitakagaya neighborhood for the community. A second flag workshop was also hosted at Osaka Konanzokei High School.
Publication
To showcase all the flags and the various locations the traveling exhibition has been shown at, I designed a printed publication that included all of the flags with their artist statements and ICS code pairings, exhibition photographs, and workshop poetry and accompanying Tyvek® flags. Custom graphics were also created for each section corresponding to the exhibition location, along with English translation of poems that were originally in Japanese.
View the digital publication here.
Photo Credits:
Photos of individual flags and flag workshops by Robin Lasser
Photos from exhibition at Chidori Bunka by Robin Lasser and Patrick Lydon