17 September – 10 October 2021
MUGA
KG+ | MOGANA
For this year’s KG+, a satellite event of KYOTOGRAPHIE, SYNONYM curated, directed and produced one of the selected artists, MUGA’s debut solo exhibition that took place in MOGANA, Kyoto (京都) for the event, from the 17th of September to the 17th of October.
Titled The Colors of My Maze, the exhibition is an attempt to visualise the creative and thinking process behind MUGA’s work series, Just A Thin Paper (2021), where the artist intends to tell a story of falsehood in photography. The exhibition reimagined and presented the series in a spinning maze-like installation, it welcomes viewers to take part in this playful but ironically open and transparent maze, delving into the artist’s subconsciousness where they would encounter works of joys and obstacles along the way before reaching the destination.
A selection of MUGA’s works from the series of MOSAIC (2020), The Window (2019) as well as Just A Thin Paper (2021) were presented at MOGANA WHITE during the opening and closing period of KG+ 2021.
On the 18th of September and the 10th of October, SYNONYM conceived two themed welcome events named [Suigetsu Kyōka 水月鏡花] and [Akikaze to Akishigure 秋風と秋時雨] respectively at MOGANA BAR — a celebration of the autumn new moon — the two events showcased photographs from MUGA and the botanical works created by Yuka Fukushima (福島 由桂), a long term collaborator of SYNONYM’s, from Petrichor (Nagoya 名古屋), paired with 5 mocktails dreamt up by Shingo Kawai (川合 信護) from BAR chord (Nagoya). The collaboration aims to highlight the ephemeral and subtle beauty of Japanese aesthetics, paying homage to the inception concept of MOGANA.
MUGA is a visual artist with a primary focus on using photography as the creative medium. Now based in Aichi 愛知, once a professional snowboarder, after retiring as an athlete MUGA began venturing into the field of vintage fashion, whilst studying fine-art photography aspired to become an artist. With previous experience in exhibiting in group shows in Japan and overseas, The Colors of My Maze will be his debut solo show.
The exhibition and events are warmly supported by MOGANA, designed by Takashi Yamaguchi 山口 隆. Within the hotel, it restores an old architectural style of Kyoto called “Unagi no nedoko うなぎの寝床”. MOGANA is a space where a traditional Kyo-Machiya 京町屋 meets modernity, with a delicate touch of contemporary art and craft.
Exhibition: The Colors of My Maze
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MOGANA WHITE
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MOGANA BAR: Suigetsu Kyōka 水月鏡花
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Credit
Artist & Creative Direction: MUGA
Curator & Co-Producer: Axel Wang @SYNONYM
Event Collaborators: Petrichor & BAR chord
Project Director & Co-Producer: Soichiro Kimura 木村 宗一郎 @SYNONYM
Photography: Yūki Shibata 柴田 祐希 & SYNONYM
Supported by KG+ and MOGANA