Shed of leaves

The project is an intervention on an aged shed situated in the small port town of Hitachinaka city, Ibaraki.

"The owner finally decided to demolish this rusty timeworn shed this spring. The finishing blow that determined its fate was the tsunami that devastated the area two years ago. Looking for a location for a kiosk for an art event which was booked for the same timing as the demolition, we decided to borrow this shed and add a bit of face-lift for its twilight days".

"Using leaves collected by local students, we held an art workshop. We press-dried the leaves, as you would do to make dry flowers, attached them to the rusted corrugated wall with magnets and spray-painted over them. When these leaves were peeled off, the pre-existing texture of the old building was revealed, as if the old memory is excavated along with it. We would then use the leaves that were peeled off to create a mobile. Leaves are placed all around the shed to retrace the shape of the building" says Ryohei Tanaka.

This art installation remains for the duration of the summer in the small port town of Hitachinaka, where the fear of the earthquake disaster still remains. The leaves mobile passively sways like a “Furin” – the Japanese glass wind chime – with the slight air movement giving a sense of coolness to this small resting kiosk.