Paper is all that artists Kelvin Atmadibrata (Indonesia) and Rin Ioka (Japan) want for Christmas this year, as the duo collaborates on an origami exhibition titled Mobile Garden at Pagoda St.’s Forth Gallery from Dec 23 to 30.
Paper is all that artists Kelvin Atmadibrata (Indonesia) and Rin Ioka (Japan) want for Christmas this year, as the duo collaborates on an origami exhibition titled Mobile Garden at Pagoda St.’s Forth Gallery from Dec 23 to 30.
Sharing the same interest of origami or the art of folding paper, the 2 met in Japan during one of Rin’s art exhibition and decided to collaborate in Singapore.
Previously, both the works of Kelvin and Rin were exhibited at the Pameran Poska 2008 in Singapore, an exhibition of postcard-sized artwork. That exhibition ended on Dec 20.
1 travelling garden; 2 different stories
Though both artists’ interpretation of Mobile Garden differ, they were happy to work with the concept.
Kelvin, 20, a Nanyang Technological University (NTU) undergraduate, explained the idea of Mobile Garden as “a garden that we carry in our mind”, where garden is a metaphor and changes according to what we feel or think.
As such, each of our interpretations of Kelvin’s installations varies.
While Kelvin took a profound approach to the concept, Rin followed the literal meaning of Mobile Garden as her artworks reveal a story of butterflies travelling to a happy place. 30-year-old Rin said that her installations also follow the theme of “Child Memories”.
As a kindergarten teacher, an artist and the singer for Japanese band KaRinBa, Rin combines her talents from these jobs to create her art pieces. For Mobile Garden, she wants her audience to explore the idea of memories and the importance of remembering them.
Paper artGiven her varied talents, it came as no surprise that Rin complemented her child-like art pieces with the soothing songs of her band KaRinBa.
Though their notion of Mobile Garden differs, their aim of the exhibition is identical. Kelvin said, “The aim of the exhibition is to show that origami is not just mere art.”
He also said that origami can be a potential platform to express one’s emotions and creativity.
Origami meets contemporary art
Now though it IS an origami art exhibition, doesn’t mean that all you see is works of paper. In fact, paper is integrated with other materials like clay, wire, tissue and even baby powder to complete an origami art installation.
Origami ChristmasFor instance, Kelvin’s 3-piece art installation Baby’s Breath includes one which has a tape sculpture of a ‘baby’ incorporated with paper-folded baby’s breath (above). To give this a multi-sensory dimension, a scent that we link closely to babies, baby powder, is sprinkled on the base and body of the art piece.
Above: Lighted Butterflies by Rin Ioka
Rin’s artworks included photographs and clay sculptures of coniferous trees and animals. Decorative lights accompanied the paper-folded butterflies to show the delight of the butterflies in flying towards their destination (above).
The amiable artist explained that the coniferous trees play the most integral part of her art pieces, while also linking to the concept of memories. “As a young kid, I always go to a garden near my house where there was a tree I like. This is the first (earliest) happy memory that I remember as a child,” she says.
After appreciating the origami works of these 2 artists, you can get involved and learn to fold a chrysanthemum flower and add it onto the art installation displayed along the narrow corridor in Forth Gallery.
For each chrysanthemum flower added onto the artwork, 10 cents would be donated to Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA).
After all this is Christmas, the season of giving.
Forth Gallery is located at 69A (2nd floor) Pagoda Street.
Opening hours: 11am to 7pm (closed on Mondays and Public Holidays)
This piece is part of the UrbanWire’s Christmas-New Year supplement.
