Ayano Sudo, Where Demons or Serpents May Dwell S.A., 2024, Inkjet print - © Courtesy of the artist & MEM, Tokyo
TITLE_NAME :
Ayano Sudo "MISSING"
30/11/2024 - 22/12/2024
MEM
NADiff A/P/A/R/T 3F,
1-18-4, Ebisu,
150–0013 Tokyo
www.mem-inc.jp
MEM presents a solo exhibition of new works by Ayano Sudo. Through her photography, Sudo explores themes such as her subjects’ desire for transformation and their idealized self-images in her pursuit of realizing the self within the photographic medium. Her work challenges traditional notions of gender and aesthetic values. Early in her career, Sudo created her Metamorphose series, inspired by a strong longing to become “someone who is not me.” She photographed herself in various costumes and makeup styles as if she were playing with a doll to craft her desired personas. Then, in her mid-20s, she experienced a severe illness that left her acutely aware of the “body as a vessel.” Around this time, she encountered several missing-person posters in the corner of the train station and was shocked to find young girls whose whereabouts were unknown for over a decade. Amidst the rush of commuters, the pleas of these posters were ignored, leaving the silent presence of girls within the photographs as evidence of their disappearance and as proof of their past existence. Sudo found herself grappling with a fear that she might disappear unnoticed as she became keenly aware of the existence of these girls, whom she couldn’t dismiss as unrelated to her. Her desire to preserve the vitality that these girls once radiated led to her 2014 series, Gespenster, in which she depicted their lives and stories through self-portraiture. Ten years after her iconic Gespenster series, Sudo presents a new series titled Oni ga Sumuka, Ja ga Sumuka (“Where Demons or Serpents May Dwell”), featuring self-portraits depicting iconic women from various eras who left lasting impressions upon history. “I always find myself wondering about people who have disappeared—iconic women who etched indelible marks on our collective memory but have since faded into obscurity. No matter how much I search the internet, there is no way to find them today. I stare at faint, blurry images that surface, filling in the gaps with my imagination and sharpening their resolution. Through my corporeality, they emerge into the world of midnight blue.” — Ayano Sudo, from production notes for the MISSING exhibition The women Sudo uses as models in her work are so iconic that they are instantly recognizable to those familiar with their distinctive fashion and makeup, even without mentioning their names. Drawing from limited available information, Sudo reconstructs their personas through self-portraiture, donning their iconic attire and reproducing them with attention to detail. Photography, as a medium, preserves the reality of past existence, allowing figures to reappear before us as they once were. Through her chosen method of self-portraiture, Sudo embodies the girls she saw on missing-person posters and now iconic women from different eras, not as others but through herself. This exhibition features nine photographs in which Sudo depicts herself as nine iconic women.
30/11/2024 - 22/12/2024
MEM
NADiff A/P/A/R/T 3F,
1-18-4, Ebisu,
150–0013 Tokyo
www.mem-inc.jp
MEM presents a solo exhibition of new works by Ayano Sudo. Through her photography, Sudo explores themes such as her subjects’ desire for transformation and their idealized self-images in her pursuit of realizing the self within the photographic medium. Her work challenges traditional notions of gender and aesthetic values. Early in her career, Sudo created her Metamorphose series, inspired by a strong longing to become “someone who is not me.” She photographed herself in various costumes and makeup styles as if she were playing with a doll to craft her desired personas. Then, in her mid-20s, she experienced a severe illness that left her acutely aware of the “body as a vessel.” Around this time, she encountered several missing-person posters in the corner of the train station and was shocked to find young girls whose whereabouts were unknown for over a decade. Amidst the rush of commuters, the pleas of these posters were ignored, leaving the silent presence of girls within the photographs as evidence of their disappearance and as proof of their past existence. Sudo found herself grappling with a fear that she might disappear unnoticed as she became keenly aware of the existence of these girls, whom she couldn’t dismiss as unrelated to her. Her desire to preserve the vitality that these girls once radiated led to her 2014 series, Gespenster, in which she depicted their lives and stories through self-portraiture. Ten years after her iconic Gespenster series, Sudo presents a new series titled Oni ga Sumuka, Ja ga Sumuka (“Where Demons or Serpents May Dwell”), featuring self-portraits depicting iconic women from various eras who left lasting impressions upon history. “I always find myself wondering about people who have disappeared—iconic women who etched indelible marks on our collective memory but have since faded into obscurity. No matter how much I search the internet, there is no way to find them today. I stare at faint, blurry images that surface, filling in the gaps with my imagination and sharpening their resolution. Through my corporeality, they emerge into the world of midnight blue.” — Ayano Sudo, from production notes for the MISSING exhibition The women Sudo uses as models in her work are so iconic that they are instantly recognizable to those familiar with their distinctive fashion and makeup, even without mentioning their names. Drawing from limited available information, Sudo reconstructs their personas through self-portraiture, donning their iconic attire and reproducing them with attention to detail. Photography, as a medium, preserves the reality of past existence, allowing figures to reappear before us as they once were. Through her chosen method of self-portraiture, Sudo embodies the girls she saw on missing-person posters and now iconic women from different eras, not as others but through herself. This exhibition features nine photographs in which Sudo depicts herself as nine iconic women.