Concrete Planet: “SIDE CORE Exhibition” Delves into the City’s Underbelly

Chapter 1: “Perspective” — How to View the City?

On the second floor, the first eye-catching piece is Tokyo Streets. The wall displaying the artwork rotates slowly, illuminated irregularly by natural light and light from the pieces on the opposite side. The large screen features a collage of familiar roadwork signs. However, each piece of text and pictogram, while appearing similar, has subtle differences upon closer inspection (such as the angle of a person holding a shovel or the brim of a helmet). Unlike road signs or emergency exits, construction signs lack a standardized design, resulting in a “kind of like this, right?” discrepancy akin to a game of broken telephone. The prism reflective materials used in the signs are also varied, creating a beautiful and elusive play of light.

The light source is Breath of the Night. One side of a car’s headlight is mounted on the wall and flickers in complex patterns synchronized with programmed music. The single headlight can resemble an animal’s eye or even wings.

The highlight is the large installation piece Time for Computers and Bulldozers on the right. Balls are dropped from the third floor into iron pipes, and the resulting sounds create a “sound sculpture” that immerses the audience. The sharp, resonant metal noises are much more intense than expected, resembling the sound of subway brakes. Eventually, when the balls are ejected into a simple bucket at the far right, the space regains its tranquility. I was surprised by the small size of the balls, but what struck me most was that the piece relies on the museum staff to collect and replenish the balls at regular intervals. It’s intriguing to think that the piece cannot function without people… but upon reflection, almost everything in the city is made by people for people and fundamentally depends on human presence for its existence.

Soft Buildings, Hard Ground is a ceramic sculpture. It features objects that seem to lack clear ownership, such as street blocks, broken bottles, haphazardly placed plants, and broken umbrellas—items that are suspended in their existence. While trash thrown into a household bin is considered personal waste, objects left on the street acquire an odd sense of publicness and become part of the urban landscape.

Ceramics, created through shaping and firing clay, are often considered humanity’s first industrial waste. The artist uses ceramics as a symbolic medium to create objects that exist in the zone between the individual and the city. It’s amusing to think that if a major earthquake buried the Watari-um Museum underground, future generations might discover this artwork and scratch their heads in curiosity.

Chapter 2: “Action” — How to Interact with the City?

On the third floor, be sure to pay attention to the video works. Additionally, don’t miss the opportunity to view artworks while moving between the second and third floors.

One of the most striking and solidly crafted works is the video piece untitled on the left. It features a figure walking expressionlessly through a tunnel with passing cars in a four-and-a-half-minute film. As the figure moves, they rub their shoulder against the wall, scraping away accumulated exhaust soot. This causes the figure’s T-shirt to turn completely black, leaving a line at shoulder height on the wall where the figure has walked. Despite using a different medium, this too can be seen as a form of graffiti in the sense that it leaves a trace of its presence in the city.

The description notes that the work involves “scanning the city through the body,” which makes sense—if you want to engage with a subject, physical contact is necessary, and traces will inevitably be left behind. As I watched, I began to understand why artists intervene in urban spaces and why art in public spaces exists. It became clear that this engagement is essential for perceiving and understanding the world around us.

The more you become aware of the strange details of the city through a particular perspective, the more overwhelmed you can feel by its complexity and sheer volume of information. Feeling disoriented about where you are standing can be quite unsettling. Just as you would wander aimlessly around a new neighborhood when you move, to firmly establish your presence in the city, you need to engage with it and mark your place, even if just incrementally. In that light, street art seems quite earnest.

As you proceed further, more video works are displayed. empty spring, as it is titled, shows the streets of Shibuya completely deserted during the state of emergency in April 2020.

However, this work is more than just a recording. It captures what appears to be poltergeist phenomena (or something like it) occurring in various parts of deserted Shibuya. Traffic cones cross the crosswalk on their own, and trash cans next to vending machines eject cans. While the visible strings pulling the objects make it clear that this isn’t meant to be a realistic ghost story, the setting includes iconic locations like Shibuya’s scramble crossing and in front of PARCO, and the scenes are set in broad daylight. In an otherwise unimaginable empty cityscape, these manual “poltergeists” come to life. In other words, this is not CGI. The work doesn’t simply play with the idea of inanimate objects moving by themselves in an empty city. Instead, it presents an eerie situation that is almost unbelievable, with a chilling backdrop that makes it a truly unsettling experience.

Chapter 3: “Storytelling” — A Tale of Navigating a City Maze

On the fourth floor, the exhibition is capped off by the installation piece “under city,” a project that has been ongoing since 2023. “under city” features footage of skaters navigating nine underground spaces in Tokyo, edited to create the illusion of exploring a vast subterranean labyrinth. The exhibition uses five monitors scattered throughout a dark room to allow visitors to reexperience the sensations of sound and light in these underground environments, and to explore how attention is directed in such spaces. This piece stands out as a highlight of the “SIDE CORE” exhibition, and you should definitely take the time to sit down and watch it carefully. The nearly 20-minute viewing experience will feel like a cinematic journey, and the time will pass in the blink of an eye.

So what kind of film is it? It’s science fiction! Skaters clad in protective gear, equipped with lighting equipment, solemnly descend secret staircases. Faced with the underground labyrinth, they tighten their expressions and begin their cautious descent. Their presence evokes the image of a “daring exploration team landing on an alien planet for humanity’s survival.”

Underground spaces like rainwater reservoirs are dark corners of the city unknown to most people. Even though we live above them and rely on them during heavy rains, we rarely think about them. It struck me that we might be remarkably indifferent and unguarded about our urban surroundings.

These skaters cut through and attempt to conquer these spaces. It’s not on foot, nor by bicycle, but on skateboards. Skateboards are meant for navigating alleys and uncovering overlooked spots. By scanning the city’s underground spaces, they explore the periphery of the world and, ultimately, confirm their own place at its center. This is the story that unfolds.

On the same fourth floor, there’s a bucket placed on a pedestal without any explanation. Curious if it’s there to catch leaks, I took a peek and found a hole in the bottom, through which I could see the sound sculpture “Time for Computers and Bulldozers” from the lower floor. When I brought my head close, the rolling metal sound of the ball became pleasantly mellow. I’m not sure if this is how it’s meant to be enjoyed, but it somehow made me feel like I got a little bonus.

Broadening the Horizons of Urban Imagination

Fortunately, the Watari Museum of Contemporary Art’s official website offers a video tour with the artists explaining their works. Additionally, the booklet received with your ticket includes brief explanations for all the pieces, which can be a helpful guide for your visit. Engaging with these explanations can enrich your experience, as the key to this exhibition lies in how personally you connect with the artworks.

The “SIDE CORE Exhibition | Concrete Planet” will be on view until December 8, 2024. The exhibition takes place at the Watari Museum of Contemporary Art and in the surrounding outdoor spaces. Interestingly, the artworks are not only inside the museum but also placed in the vacant lot across the street, creating a seamless connection between the exhibition and everyday urban space. With a stimulated imagination and a sense of determination from your visit, the journey home is sure to be more exciting than ever.

SIDE CORE｜Concrete Planet

Closed: Mondays (Open on 8/12, 9/16, 9/23, 10/14, and 11/4) Hours: 11:00 AM to 7:00 PM Admission:

• Adults: ¥1,500
• Adult Pair: ¥2,600
• Students (25 and under), High School Students, Seniors (70 and over), holders of disability certificates (physical, developmental, or mental health), and their caregivers (up to one person): ¥1,300
• Elementary and Middle School Students: ¥500

Tickets are valid for unlimited re-entry during the exhibition period. Please present proof of identity for re-entry.

Organizers: Concrete Planet Exhibition Executive Committee [Suda Ironworks Co., Ltd. / COOP TORiS LLC / Watari Museum of Contemporary Art] Supported by: Tokyo Metropolitan Foundation for History and Culture Arts Council Tokyo [Arts and Culture Enhancement Grant] Official Website: http://www.watarium.co.jp/jp/exhibition/202408/