elena knox
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Japonisme (self care)
​2021, digital video, stereo, 11:05
Picture
Picture
Japonisme (self care) documents an improvised performance by Elena in the bath of a Tokyo love hotel, around New Year.

Fruit is a popular formal gift in Japan. It must be both shaped and presented perfectly, and is consequently very expensive.

Fruit-growing is considered an art. Techniques used in cultivation include training, supporting and monitoring the plants; giving each piece of fruit its own sunhat; allowing each vine or branch to support only one fruit; pollinating blossoms with a hand-held brush; and even individual massage. 


As a "foreign" resident of Japan, an enthusiast of its traditional bathing practices, and a recipient of its famed resistance to integration, Japonisme is the artist's attempt to find an entry point to cultural immersion.
Credits
Music: Lindsay Webb


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see also Chinoiserie (ode to Wuhan)
                                                                                                                                                                                                                         © elena knox 2023
  • about
  • works
    • video
    • installation
    • performance
    • music
  • news
  • contact
  • CURATION
  • KNOX+WATANABE