ball sheet ball ball sheet ball

Since the late 1990s, Motohiro TOMII (1974-) has continually explored the latent power of “sculpture” by questioning the act of “making artworks.” His many-faceted experimental creations range from three-dimensional works that use ready-made articles to art creation “instructions,” book production, and artworks critical of exhibit spaces. In every case, he reveals the material qualities of an object or place through actions that are occasioned by the objects. Here, we consider Tomii’s approach to art through a work newly acquired by this museum, along with works created by Tomii in recent years. In ball sheet ball, the material qualities of the objects composing the artwork give the artwork its form and character. The artist observed the inherent and coincidental qualities of his materials with time and care, and through his actions accordingly, the objects themselves have discovered the artwork’s natural form. Because many of Tomii’s works need to be “made” each time they are displayed, the works are assembled according to an “instruction paper.” What makes this possible, we can say, is his certainty the work is sufficiently devised to enable each object to fully display its function. For the artwork, the instruction paper is an inevitable consequence.