PRESS RELEASE 2016.10.24.

Nobuaki ITOH Solo Exhibition Āto and Artist
Title: Āto and Artist
Artist: Nobuaki ITOH
Duration: 11/26 (Sat.) - 12/25 (Sun.), 2016
- Our gallery hours are Monday 5-11pm, Thursday to Saturday 12-7pm, and Sunday 12-6pm- Opening Reception : 11/26, Saturday, 6-9pm with the artist present

Venue : WAITINGROOM (Shibuya Hyacca Bldg. 4B, 2-8-11 Ebisu-nishi, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo)
Tokyo, Japan - WAITINGROOM is pleased to announce Nobuaki ITOH Solo Exhibiton, Āto and Artist, from November 26th toDecember 25th, 2016 and it is the first time to present the artist’s solo exhibition at our gallery. ITOH has been exploring the issue ofbody, life / death, and spirit, which are not avoidable for human being, and creating video and installation works in this theme. Theexhibition will consist of two video works; Āto (Art), the video consists of short footage, which show the artist himself talking the issueof the “essence of art” in front of masterpieces, artist’s studio, and people who are touring to watch artworks. The other work, Artist, akind of “Mockumentary” which shows the process of changing the mind of one woman, who had not been able to decide whether she
would become an artist or not, but finally stated her will to be an artist. In this video, what changes her mind is a practice of shouting“Ten Statements for an Artist” which consist of remarks by 10 artists, the method of which is based on the new employee trainings ofJapanese companies. In this exhibition, there will be two different versions of the work, Āto (Art), Japan and Spain versions, and Artist
along with the related drawings.

《Āto (Japan Ver.) 》2015, single channel video with sound, 10min.5sec.

《Āto (Spain Ver.) 》2015, single channel video with sound, 10min.5sec.

About the artist, Nobuaki ITOH
Born in 1981 in Nara, currently lives and works in Nara and Kyoto. He graduated from Kyoto University of Arts and Design in themajor of Fine Art in 2006 and obtained a Ph.D. in Art at Kyoto City University of Arts in 2016. His recent exhibitions include a solo
exhibition “Āto” (APMoA Project, ARCH vol.13: Nobuaki ITOH, Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art, Nagoya, 2015), group exhibition“GRAVEDAD CERO” (Matadero Madrid, Madrid, Spain, 2015), solo exhibition “Artist and Prophet” (HAGISO, Tokyo, 2014),“Ushimado Asia Triennale” (Setouchi City Museum of Art, Okayama, 2014), group exhibition “Me’tis - fighting art -“ (Gallery @KCUA,Kyoto, 2012), group exhibition “RESONANSE” (Suntory Museum, Osaka, 2010) and many others.

↓<NEXT PAGE> About the exhibition (continued.)PRESS RELEASE 2016.10.24.

What on earth do we consider as “art”?
The exhibition will consist of two video works, Āto (Art), and Artist, which question us “What on earth do we consider as art?”
In the work, Āto (Art), ITOH himself is projected in front of museums and public artworks around Japan, talking about “the essence ofart”. Where is the essence of art? How the ideal art should be? ITOH says in the video that the artwork created from the illimitable
desire of recognition can easily be consumed but the “X” beyond the artwork, in other words, to pursue the ideal which human being
never can reach is the genuine “essence of art”. In the meantime, he sometimes makes funny faces or weird gestures while he istalking in a detached tone, hence those footages of selfie images are as if the collage of videos posted on SNS so that a contradiction
between what he says and his attitude are appearing gradually. As the artist himself acts both roles who shoot and to be shot, his words
become wandering between reality and fiction. In addition to this work, Āto (Japan Ver.), which has been exhibited at Aichi Prefectural
Museum of Art, there will be another version, Āto (Spain Ver.), which was shot during his residency in Madrid (Spain), and both will beprojected as 2 channel format in the gallery space. Spain version was made with almost the same script and same setup in front ofSpanish masterpieces and environment around art, using the same method of the Japanese one. By projecting Spain and Japaneseversions together in the same space, even if the object is the artist himself, the contrast is appearing by the circumstances, itilluminates the different situations surround art in both countries, furthermore the different history of them.
The work, Artist, is a kind of “Mockumentary” which shows the process of changing the mind of one woman, who had not been able todecide whether she would become an artist or not, but finally stated her will to be an artist, by practicing to shout “Ten Statements for
an Artist” which consist of remarks by 10 artists, the method of which is based on the new employee trainings of Japanese companies.
It starts as a comical setting to keep shouting “Ten Statements for an Artist”, but eventually she almost becomes an indoctrinatedperson, by repeating this attitude over and over again. To repeat the principal of how the artist should be highlights the question of“What is an Artist” paradoxically, and this operation of repetition changes those words to the meaningless ones by degrees. However,she declares that she will be an artist at the end with satisfied smile, feeling like a sense of accomplishment. “Chicken or the egg, Artist
or Fine Art”. The question of “Who/What is an Artist?” is being connected to “Who/What am I?” which is an universal question for selfconsciousness.
“I have been exploring the issue of body, life/death and spirit, which are not avoidable for human being. I don’t limit my style of making
artworks, but chooses on each occasion the best way to make audiences realize these issues.” - Nobuaki ITOH
ITOH has been making artworks that the truth/ falsehood or real/fiction are mixed up, by using the relationship between acting andbeing acted in the video intentionally. The two video works in this exhibition create the distortion of real (reality) in the screen andquestion where is the true identity of attitude he does and words he says in the video, hence, it makes audience realize his universal
theme of spirit about Art and Artist.

Left and Right: 《Artist》2013-2014, single channel video with sound, 35min.

↓＜NEXT PAGE＞ Artist Biography

PRESS RELEASE 2016.10.24.

Nobuaki ITOH
1981 Born in Nara, Japan
Currently lives and works in Nara and Kyoto
EDUCATION
2016 Kyoto City University of Arts, Ph.D. in Art, Kyoto, Japan
2009 Kyoto City University of Arts, M.F.A. in Concept and Media Planning, Kyoto, Japan
2006 Kyoto University of Arts and Design, B.A. in Fine Art, Kyoto, JapanSOLO EXHIBITIONS
2016 Āto and Artist, WAITINGROOM, Tokyo
2015 Animal (STUDY), ART SPACE ZERO-ONE, OsakaĀto (AM Ver.), Antenna Media, Kyoto
APMoA Project, ARCH vol. 13 : Nobuaki ITOH, Āto, Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art, Nagoya
2014 0099, CASO, Osaka *Solo as Itoh+Bak
Artist and Prophet, HAGISO, Tokyo
2013 Artist, Antenna Media, Kyoto
2011 Prophet, Gallery @KCUA, Kyoto
2010 Dead body of recollection, "CUBIC" Gallery Iteza, Kyoto
2009 1+1=1, "CUBIC" Gallery Iteza, Kyoto
a short story, CASO, Osaka
2008 1+1=1, CASO, Osaka
People who is recognizing the phantom image/ Questioner and Actor, Gallery16, Kyoto
2007 BODY SOAP, "CUBIC" Gallery Iteza, Kyoto
2004 delusive skin, "CUBIC" Gallery Iteza, Kyoto
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2016 S-HOUSE Museum Opening Exhibition, S-HOUSE Museum, Okayama
2015 GRAVEDAD CERO, Matadero Madrid, Madrid, Spain
Art Week in front of school 2015, Asanuma Memorial, NaraStill moving @KCUA, Gallery @KCUA, Kyoto
2014 Ushimado Asia Triennale, Setouchi City Museum of Art, Okayama
Hairy Soy Source, Soap and Ten Statements for an Artist, MIACA, Hong Kongego - Reexamining the Self -, punto, Kyoto
2013 Cho-Kyoto 2013, Today's Machiya in Kyoto, Kyoto《Ten Statements for an artist drawing》2013-2014, paper, pencil, inkjet print
Nuit Blanche Kyoto 2013, Gallery @KCUA, Kyoto
installation view (Antenna Media, Kyoto)
Ogaki Biennale, IAMAS, Gifu
Transfiguration of Aesthetic Sense, Osaka City Central Public Hall, Osaka
2012 Transmit Program #3 Me'tis –fighting art-, Gallery @KCUA, Kyoto
2011 DONATIONS!! - For the stricken area of Great East Japan Earthquake -, GURA, Kyoto
2010 WAKUWAKU Kyoto, Rissei Elementary School, Kyoto
Small Museum 2010, Gallery Yuragi, Kyoto
RESONANSE, Suntory Museum, Osaka
2009 NONAME-KYOTO, Rissei Elementary School, Kyoto
NONAME-YOKOHAMA, Yokohama ZAIM, Kanagawa
New Design of Narration, Image Forum, Tokyo
2008 Graduation Exhibition, Kyoto City University of Arts, Kyoto
2007 Taro Okamoto Award for Contemporary Art, Taro Okamoto Museum of Art, Kanagawa
Shijo Street Gallery, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, Kyoto
2006 STAIRS, CASO, Osaka,Graduation Exhibition, Gallery RAKU, Kyoto
2005 FRAME PLUS Hisao MATSUURA, CASO, Osaka
2004 Kyoto Art Annual, Kyoto University of Arts and Design↓＜NEXT PAGE＞ Artist Biography (continued.)PRESS RELEASE 2016.10.24.

AWARDS
2012 The 12th Gunma Biennale for Young Artists
2009 Encouragement Prize at Graduation Exhibition, Kyoto City University of Arts
2007 Taro Okamoto Award for Contemporary Art, Taro Okamoto Museum of Art
1999 Shortlisted for Bungakukai Shinjinsho
VIDEO SCREENINGS
2016 Screening “Melting Point”+TEGAMI Project from Hamburg, The Third Gallery Aya, Osaka
Melting Point – FRISE, Hamburg, Germany
Tokyo Lift-Off Film Festival 2016 Official Selection, UPLINK, Tokyo
2015 13e Festival international Signes de Nuit : FOCUS JAPAN, Maison du Japon, Paris, FranceImage Forum Festival 2015, Theater Image Forum, Tokyo, Kyoto, Aichi, Fukuoka, Yokohama, *Invited Work2009 New Design of the Narration, Image Forum Cinematheque, Tokyo
2006 KATARIHA – experimentation of storytelling -, Image Forum Cinematheque, Tokyo
2005 Young Perspective 2005, Image Forum, Tokyo
2004 BIWAKO Biennale, Tokiwa-kan Project, Tokiwa-kan, Shiga
Video Sarcasm, Kansai German Culture Center, Kyoto
ARTIST IN RESIDENCE
2015 El Ranchito Korea -Japan, Matadero Madrid, Madrid, Spain
CATALOGUES AND BROCHURES
APMoA Project, ARCH vol.13 Nobuaki ITOH “Āto”, Brochure, Feb. 2015, Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art
Gifu Ohgaki Biennale 2013, Catalogue, Jan. 2015, Institute of Advanced Media Arts and Science [IAMAS]
document ego, April 2014, ego exhibition documentation catalogue association
Kyogei Transmit Program #3 Metis – Fighting Art -, May 15th 2012, Kyoto City University of Arts ART GALLERY @KCUARESONANSE, April 2010, Suntory Museum
PUBLIC COLLECTIONSS-HOUSE Museum, Okayama

ARTIST WEBSITE
http://nobuakiitoh.com《Āto (JAPAN Ver.) 》2015, single channel video with sound, 10min.5sec.

*Inquiry about the exhibition and artist
WAITINGROOM (Director: Tomoko Ashikawa)
Address: Shibuya Hyacca Bldg. 3F 4B & 4D, 2-8-11 Ebisu-Nishi, Shibuya-Ku, Tokyo 150-0021
Hours: Mon. 5-11pm Thur. to Sat. 12-7pm Sun. 12-6pm
Tel&Fax: 03-3476-1010 email: info@waitingroom.jp
web: http://waitingroom.jp