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I Make Up And Become Art Mama

Venice Agendas  

The Venice Biennial

2017

 

 

"I Make Up And Become Art Mama" Tatsumi Orimoto invited audiences to get lost between Piazza San Marco, the Giardini and Castello in Venice Italy with a slow procession through the city. ​
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Waugh Office in collaboration with Venice Agendas for the Venice Biennial . Venice Agendas 2017: The Contract was a programme of events that included an exhibition, a publication, talks and performances in London, Venice, Margate and Folkestone.

The theme of this edition, The Contract was particularly relevant both politically and socially. Contracts, whether written or spoken, are promises and agreements that we make with each other, within our communities and across society in general. 

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Known for his seemingly bizarre activities such as "The Bread Man”, where he appears with his face obscured with French bread sticks, this persona is a clear example of what Tatsumi describes as “Communication Art”. The more recent "Art Mama" series has captured the public’s imagination as it provided an insight into the way an artist took a universal theme such as ageing and transformed it into an inspirational portrait of intimacy.

 

"My mother is 91 years old and has become unable to walk by herself. Perhaps, the worldview may be tougher on her existence, but she looks glorious in my work!"

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Often incorporating found materials and elements of humour he has ensured that his art is not allowed to drift too far from the lived realities of most people. In the era of instant imaging his strategy seems like a prophetic paradigm, revealing the importance of photography in the construction of identity and memory: to hold onto our experiences we have to become producers of our own mythology.