If Pythagoras, Aristotle or any of the other axial luminaries of
the Classical World were alive today, they might just be working as
conceptual artists in the mold of Hitoshi Nomura, rather than
philosophers and scientists. This is because the science and
philosophy that these intellectual giants practiced were infused
with a mysticism and metaphysical side quite at odds with the
strict criteria and dry agendas of their modern equivalents, and
much more in keeping with the interests and artistic methods of
Nomura, whose career is the subject of a major retrospective at the
National Art Center Tokyo (NACT).
"Tardiology" (1968-1969) by
Hitoshi Nomura
As "Nomura Hitoshi: Perceptions — Changes in Time and Field"
shows, the 64-year-old artist has attempted to reveal and
encapsulate the unseen forces of nature that move and shape our
universe, often with the same kind of mystical bent that drove the
greatest minds of ancient thought, in his 40-year career.
The exhibition is also notable because of the museum's attempt
to make contemporary art accessible to the wider public. Nomura is
the subject of volume four of NACT's free bilingual booklet, "Door
to Contemporary Art," a series that is carefully written to explain
art to general readers.
The best starting point for the exhibition, and the works that
begin the book, are Nomura's "Tardiology" series (1969/2009), for
which the artist constructed large towers from corrugated cardboard
that were then left to the mercy of gravity and time (and
occasionally the weather) to sag, bend, and topple. For this
exhibition, a 7.15-meter-high tower has been constructed inside the
exhibition space, with earlier towers presented through
photography. Using this remarkably simple method, Nomura has
effectively demonstrated the power of gravity over time.
Time is Nomura's frequent refrain, with photographic
installations featuring the astronomical rhythms of sun, moon,
stars and comets. But some of his most thought-provoking pieces are
more down to earth. "The Ten Million Years Tree Graft" series
(2000-2009) breathes new life into fossils by grafting fossilized
trees, with the wood grain still discernible, into freshly cut
blocks of camphor wood.
More often, however, the exhibition feels like a crash course in
science. "The Brownian Motion of Eyesight" (1972-1982) references
the random movement of microscopic particles suspended in gas or
liquid, first discovered by the Scottish botanist Robert Brown in
1827. This is thought to be generated by the "kick" of the atoms
that compose the particles. For this work, Nomura put himself in
the shoes of a microscopic particle afflicted with Browning motion.
Using a camera with a time-elapse function, he randomly and
continuously took photos over a 10-year period, with each snap
symbolizing a jerk of "Brownian" motion.
Although the results are incredibly boring to look at, this is a
thought- provoking work. Also, you may enjoy sitting down at the
special table and being handed one of the many volumes to peruse
with a set of white gloves to don so that none of the "precious"
photos are damaged.
Much more effective, as an artwork, is "The Sun on Lat. 35° N"
(1982-1987). Initially, this looks like a large pair of eyes made
from some kind of coil. The wonder increases when you realize that
this actually consists of 365 photographic images of the daily
trajectory of the Sun across the sky. These have been laid
side-by-side. In each photo, the curve of the Sun's trajectory
varies slightly. By perfectly aligning these trajectories and
joining them together, Nomura has revealed the pattern the sun
creates over the year: The vernal and autumnal equinoxes create
relatively straight lines, while summer and winter are represented
by ever tighter spirals.
An equally interesting artwork is "Moon Score" (1975-1979). By
photographing the moon at fixed times and places on film marked
with five lines — like music paper — Nomura effectively turned each
image into a single item of musical notation. This then provided
the basis for him to perform and record these "moon scores,"
creating sounds that seem to have properties of composition.
While it is easy to criticize this constant search for an
underlying pattern in the universe as mystical mumbo-jumbo, it
should be remembered that some of the greatest scientists have been
inspired by similar notions. In his book "The Sleepwalkers" (1959),
Arthur Koestler points out that the 17th-century German astronomer
Johannes Kepler arrived at his laws of planetary motion via an
esoteric belief that the orbits of the planets were related to the
six perfect solids; while Isaac Newton was well known for dabbling
in alchemy.
The beauty and appeal of Nomura's art is dependent on evoking a
sense of awe and magical wonder for the universe around us. Without
this, the exhibition would just be a random collection of photos,
cardboard boxes, random recordings, fossils, meteorites and
assemblages. Luckily, for the enjoyment and enlightenment of
visitors, Nomura proves to be something of a sorcerer.