TIMED
Alan Nakagawa
For the FAR BAZAAR/ Cerritos College
January 28 & 29, 2017
TIMED is a site-specific sound-based installation, a combobulated hyper-collage of disparate elements trying to define a state of mind difficult to put into words; Chauvet Caves, Hiroshima Atomic Dome and the Organ of Corti, all in response to the demolition of the Cerritos College Fine Arts Campus.
“In October 2016, I was given permission to conduct a three-point audio recording of the Hiroshima Atomic Dome’s interior. It was an honor, semi-spectacle and part of a journey to complete my project, : “Peace Resonance; Hiroshima/Wendover”, which is part three of a larger semi-autobiographical sound-based artwork called TRIAD.
“TIMED is the first “sketch” that incorporates the Hiroshima Atomic Dome audio recordings and is a continuation of my ongoing interest in memory and the tactility of sound waves.
“I was invited by Sergio and James to visit the ‘shack’ in preparation for the FAR Bazaar event. We briefly discussed the idea of permanency, destruction, time and my experience in the Hiroshima Atomic Dome. The next evening, I happened to watch Werner Herzog’s documentary “Cave of Forgotten Dreams”. For the past couple of years, I’ve been increasing my drawing practice (pen, charcoal, conte and watercolor). Herzog’s film really puts into gesture, the state of mind you can hit while drawing, which is so familiar in rhythm with dream-state.
“There are other connections, maybe of insignificance. 1. My career as a public art administrator. In this field, we differentiate between permanent artwork and temporary art work. Contractually, these are often defined by a month to five years (temporary) and up to thirty years or more (permanent). 2. My family is from Hiroshima and although they did not live in the City center that was devastated, they did experience dramatic hardship after WWII. I have often wondered if I’d be alive if they lived closer to ground zero? 3. The issue of gentrification is on our minds these days and in the past several weeks, I have been interviewed by a host of artists about my experience during the LA Riots (it’s the 25th Anniversary this year) and the changes I have seen in my Koreatown neighborhood. We have lived in the same house since the early 1960’s.
“I’d like to thank Sergio Teran and James MacDevitt for their trust and encouragement. Cerritos College and FAR, thanks for the shack! The support of Art Matters Inc., Bruce Yonemoto, Araceli Garcia, Edgar Garcia, CLUI, Hikmet Loe, Aandrea Stang, City of Los Angeles, City of Hiroshima, Tom Clancey, Lea Kim, American Society of Hiroshima-Nagasaki A-Bomb Survivors, Southeast Construction Products, Japanese American Cultural and Community Center, the Japanese Consulate General, Shizue Yamashiro and my family”
