TSUKIYAMA SHOTA

A surveillance camera shows a man who appears to be the resident of the room. He drinks from a mug, touches his smartphone, and goes about his daily routine. The man in the video appears to be composed and yet vaguely aware of the camera pointed at him. The layout of the room changes little by little as days go by, which the photographs convey in fragments. This is a record of spring of 2020 when Tokyo was scheduled to host the Olympics.

Tsukiyama presents a new series entitled A trapped room, which comprises photography, video, and performance art. Tsukiyama began recording the room with a surveillance camera since the time he moved into it. The initial purpose was to capture his relationship and feeling of distance with those who visited the room, but then his interest gradually shifted toward observing his own behavior.

As this mix of private and public life continues on the premise that it’ll be released one day, the novel coronavirus outbreak brings about rapid changes to the social circumstances. People are unexpectedly confined to their rooms much like how Tsukiyama has voluntarily been doing for this project. Preceding reality and now caught up by it, Tsukiyama continues on a complex path along the borderline between fiction and documentary.

Co-curated by Takahiro Ito