Natural rhythms
RUPA GOPAL
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Aesthetics coordinates with science in Masako Tanako’s kinetic sculptures.
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Photo: Rupa Gopal
Sinuous fluidity: Masako Tanako and his work.
This year has been declared the Year of Friendship between Japan and India. In one of those charming co-incidences, Masato Tanaka has come to Puducherry with his unique exhibits of “kinetic sculptures”.
A chance meeting with Aurodhan gallery owner Lalit Verma in Kuala Lumpur resulted in this show. “The grain of strands from some moments,” says Masato of his work. Aesthetics coordinates with science, technology interacts with simple nature. Steel and motor magnets create natural rhythms and harmony, moving in sinuous fluidity.
Graceful movements
“My work is too expensive for personal collections, it is okay for museums,” says Tanaka, in his halting English. His works have been shown in Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, and now India. He hopes the U.S and Europe, and Cuba will soon host him. “Interacting with the audience is very important for me,” he says. “I use electric motors, and create graceful movements like in Tai Chi. Bruce Lee is my idol. I see his movies many, many times,” he beams.
Masato teaches art at Tokyo’s Tama University one of the biggest in Asia. Experimental and new age art interest him. Moving from fabric art and installations for window displays, he has done stage and theatre backdrops, big and small. His work has also encompassed Japanese movies. Sculpture and kinetics engross him, and his creations have created a special niche in the field of art.
“What do you like about India?” I ask him. He quickly sketches a nightscape of a moon reflected in the sea. “This is my first impression of India. Other than this I’ve so far only seen the customs office, at Chennai airport, as they took time to release my crates,” he says, with a rueful smile.
The gentle beauty of his works attracts the artistic, as well as the mechanical-minded, the rotations and movements quite enchanting. His imagination has taken shape, truly.
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