Erika Kobayashi: Buoyant Baththime
GALLERY KOGURE is pleased to present a solo exhibition by sculptor Erika Kobayashi in VINYL TAPE (Kyoto). Bath time is supposed to be a moment of renewal, a time to feel clean and refreshed in the pristine white porcelain of the bathroom. However, reality often falls short. The spongey bath mat leaves uncomfortable imprints on the soles of our feet, and despite our best cleaning efforts, the grime never fully disappears. We leave the bathroom feeling unsatisfied, uneasy about the hidden dirt in the grout and other small crevices, telling ourselves everything is clean but never quite believing it.
Water spaces鈥攂athrooms, pools, or oceans鈥攁re familiar to everyone, especially with the recent rise in interest in 鈥楲iminal Spaces.鈥� We are drawn to the ideal beauty of these spaces, but when we come into direct contact with them, they feel unclean, spreading an unsettling sensation. While this discomfort is part of everyday life unless we鈥檙e in a sterile room, the gap between ideal and reality can sometimes cause deep unease.
In this exhibition, Kobayashi creates a 鈥榯axidermy鈥� of the bathroom, using tiles, mats, and soap. She attempts to fill every gap with soap, a symbol of cleanliness, to bring the space closer to an ideal state and achieve a sense of comfort. However, the soap itself becomes contaminated, blending with the dirt of reality and amplifying the discomfort.
Just as taxidermy stitches together animal skins to recreate a lifelike form, Kobayashi uses bathroom elements to create an artificial replica. Her work portrays a bath time that is both buoyant with excitement and filled with an underlying sense of obsessive anxiety鈥攁 taxidermy of an imperfect bathroom. Like taxidermy preserves a version of life, Kobayashi鈥檚 work caricatures the conflict between the ideal and real worlds. We invite you to experience this unique exploration of space.
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GALLERY KOGURE is pleased to present a solo exhibition by sculptor Erika Kobayashi in VINYL TAPE (Kyoto). Bath time is supposed to be a moment of renewal, a time to feel clean and refreshed in the pristine white porcelain of the bathroom. However, reality often falls short. The spongey bath mat leaves uncomfortable imprints on the soles of our feet, and despite our best cleaning efforts, the grime never fully disappears. We leave the bathroom feeling unsatisfied, uneasy about the hidden dirt in the grout and other small crevices, telling ourselves everything is clean but never quite believing it.
Water spaces鈥攂athrooms, pools, or oceans鈥攁re familiar to everyone, especially with the recent rise in interest in 鈥楲iminal Spaces.鈥� We are drawn to the ideal beauty of these spaces, but when we come into direct contact with them, they feel unclean, spreading an unsettling sensation. While this discomfort is part of everyday life unless we鈥檙e in a sterile room, the gap between ideal and reality can sometimes cause deep unease.
In this exhibition, Kobayashi creates a 鈥榯axidermy鈥� of the bathroom, using tiles, mats, and soap. She attempts to fill every gap with soap, a symbol of cleanliness, to bring the space closer to an ideal state and achieve a sense of comfort. However, the soap itself becomes contaminated, blending with the dirt of reality and amplifying the discomfort.
Just as taxidermy stitches together animal skins to recreate a lifelike form, Kobayashi uses bathroom elements to create an artificial replica. Her work portrays a bath time that is both buoyant with excitement and filled with an underlying sense of obsessive anxiety鈥攁 taxidermy of an imperfect bathroom. Like taxidermy preserves a version of life, Kobayashi鈥檚 work caricatures the conflict between the ideal and real worlds. We invite you to experience this unique exploration of space.
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