Thank You
Tissue roll, drawing, text
2022
“Accepting and rejecting are equally one thing.”
In Thank You project (in progress), Junwei collected the Japanese mass-produced toilet tissue rolls — revealing ありがとう("thank you”) after being used up — from Japan to the U.S.. Then, he regularly visited many overseas Japanese gardens — meticulously imitating. By exchanging and acknowledging their presence, thus, Junwei unveils that the toilet tissue and overseas gardens are equally one thing, ありがとう("thank you”) becomes the polite mediation of that embarrassment.
In the overseas Japanese gardens’ restrooms, Junwei installed his toilet tissues on which he hand-drew iconic Japanese homeland gardens. Alongside the drawing, the sentence "Do you enjoy my Japanese garden drawing? Please email me at ... " is written.
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Installed at
Japan House, Champaign, IL
Portland Japanese Garden, Portland, OR
Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO
Tissue roll, drawing, text
2022
“Accepting and rejecting are equally one thing.”
—— Marcel Duchamp on Jean-Paul Sartre’s refusing to be awarded the Nobel Prize in 1964
In Thank You project (in progress), Junwei collected the Japanese mass-produced toilet tissue rolls — revealing ありがとう("thank you”) after being used up — from Japan to the U.S.. Then, he regularly visited many overseas Japanese gardens — meticulously imitating. By exchanging and acknowledging their presence, thus, Junwei unveils that the toilet tissue and overseas gardens are equally one thing, ありがとう("thank you”) becomes the polite mediation of that embarrassment.
In the overseas Japanese gardens’ restrooms, Junwei installed his toilet tissues on which he hand-drew iconic Japanese homeland gardens. Alongside the drawing, the sentence "Do you enjoy my Japanese garden drawing? Please email me at ... " is written.
Installed at Japan House, Champaign, IL
Portland Japanese Garden, Portland, OR
Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO