Press Release

For Immediate Release
10 June 2024

KATSUNOBU YAGUCHI “AOTENJO-SAJIKI” AT THE WASHINGTOWN SITE
From 19 July to 24 August 2024, Katsunobu Yaguchi (b.1978, Japan) will be holding Aotenjo-Sajiki, a solo show at The Washingtown
Site in Mito City, Japan. This is a three-part event comprising: an art show that explores Yaguchi’s expansive body of work produced
over the past 16 years at The Washingtown Site, a video screening, and a never-before-presented theatrical piece titled Nonsense People.
The art show features a selection of works ranging from sculpture, drawing and photography, including pieces exhibited at Paris Photoin 2017 and LISTE Art Fair Basel in 2018, which will be displayed in Japan for the first time.
Launched by Yaguchi in 2008, The Washingtown Site has achieved several remarkable transformations. At the beginning it was an oldabandoned wooden house, scheduled for demolition. Yaguchi converted the house into a café, calling it Café Washingtown, where hecreated a series of community events such as the Washingtown Festival, and produced and distributed The Washingtown Newspaper,
while also running the café. The house finally had to be pulled down in 2013, when Yaguchi took on the entire demolition work himself.
He was able to preserve the ground floor exterior walls, setting up an alternative outdoor space for presenting a series of experimental
theatre pieces and video works. He also renovated and refurbished a house next door to the demolition site, and in 2018 opened Café
New Washingtown and his own atelier.
In 2024 the Washingtown Site is now undergoing a further and final transformation, and facing closure. This is the context for theforthcoming show, which celebrates Yaguchi’s creation of this space and the ideas it has generated. The broad range of works includedin the show represent the culmination of the artist’s long-term endeavour, dedication and commitment. His video work Savage
Construction is a documentary that chronicles the demolition process of Café Washingtown and the reconstruction of the outdoor spaceand Café New Washingtown. The theatre piece Nonsense People is scheduled to play for two days – Friday, 16 August and Saturday,
17, at 7.10 p.m. The art show and the screening of Savage Construction are on Thursdays to Saturdays, from 5 to 9 p.m., and thescreening starts at 7.10 p.m. Admission prices are listed below.
Nonsense People (Doors open 6.30 p.m.)¥1800 pre-sale at Ticket Pia (P-Code: 527363)¥2000 cash only at the door
Art show and video screening¥1000 multiple-entries pass, cash only at the door
For more information about Aotenjo-Sajiki, email aotenjo@washingtown.jp or visit online at https://washingtown.jp
On X (formerly Twitter) follow @washingtown_jp and Instagram @the_washingtown _site

About Katsunobu Yaguchi
Yaguchi graduated with an MA in Drawing at Camberwell College of Arts, London, UK in 2004. He has been inspired by the interaction
between body and space, often incorporating humour in his works. He has worked across a broad range of disciplines and media,including social practice, site-specific installation, performance, sculpture, film and video. From 2004 to 2008, he lived in Europe,presenting a number of improvised performance pieces in abandoned buildings and public spaces. After returning to Japan in 2008, heopened Café Washingtown in an old abandoned house in Mito City. Although the house was pulled down in 2013, it continued to serveas the wellspring of Yaguchi’s creativity. He had a solo exhibition at Paris Photo in 2017 and LISTE Art Fair Basel in 2018. Since 2023,
he has expanded his practice by opening Michinoku Café Washingtown in Mizusawa City, Iwate.
To view his artworks, visit the website at www.katsunobuyaguchi.com

The Washingtown Site / Suntopia St., 1-2-10, Minami-machi, Mito City, Ibaraki 310-0021 Japan / +81 50 3690 3387

【Images】
1. Nonsense People (theatrical piece）

Keiko Ogane, 2010, photo：Hiroya Ichikawa

Katsunobu Yaguchi, 2016 photo：Kozo Kaneda

The Washingtown Site (West side), 2020

2. Savage Construction (video screening)

The Washingtown Site (East side), 2024

Savage Construction (still images), 2013-2024

3. WASHINGTOWN DOCUMENTARIES 2008 -2024 (Art Exhibition)

WASHINGTOWN DOCUMENTARIES, 2017
installation view at Prism sector, Paris Photo, Grand Palais, Paris, France【 Inquiries regarding interviews and press】
The Washingtown Site / Keiko Ogane Gallery
Person in charge: Maki Okuno Telephone: 050-3690-3387
Mail: okuno@washingtown.jp HP: https://washingtown.jp

Remnants’ Replay, 2018
collotype print on Washi paper

Untitled (Beautiful Mountain), 2017-2024
wood chips and nails