New works by Dan John Anderson, Kazunori Hamana, Yu Kobayashi, and Ido Yoshimoto are part of 'Jinen', an exhibition now on display at Salmon Creek Farm, Fritz Haeg’s cultural commune and creative hub in California’s redwood forest after their debut in April at A-Z West in Joshua Tree. Titled ‘Jinen’, after the Japanese word for ‘living as part of nature’, the show was created in partnership with Tokyo’s Curator’s Cube gallery.
All four artists taking part in the project live in stunning, untouched locations and find much of their inspiration (and sometimes materials) in the natural landscapes around their studios. The California-based Dan John Anderson and Ido Yoshimoto work respectively from Yucca Valley, in the dramatic Mojave Desert, and Inverness, next to the lush forests and sea cliffs of the Point Reyes Peninsula. Kazunori Hamana and Yu Kobayashi, meanwhile, are both based on Japan’s rural Pacific Coast.
'Jinen' at Salmon Creek Farm
Works by Kazunori Hamana, Ido Yoshimoto and Dan John Anderson
The idea for the exhibition emerged organically between the artists, through their shared association with the gallery, and aims to support Kobayashi’s US debut. Her colourful abstract paintings set the tone for the exhibition, with Anderson, Yoshimoto and Hamana making work that responds to, and complements, her pieces.
Kobayashi, who lives and works in a self-built studio made from driftwood and recycled material near the seaside town of Shizuoka, is a ceramic artist by training but also a sculptor and painter. Her work, inspired by the pine forests and stunning views on Mount Fuji found near her home, is a major influence on the other three artists.
Painting by Yu Kobayashi
Anderson presents 13 works in native West Coast woods, with the pieces’ totem-like architectural forms and elements in blackened wood, bronze, aluminium and stained glass punctuating the natural surroundings.
Although now based near Joshua Tree, Anderson grew up immersed in the wilderness of the Pacific Northwest, and his work is inspired by a deep reverence for wood, and rooted in collaborative ethos.
Works by Kazunori Hamana, left, and Dan John Anderson, right
Highly personal and experimental, Yoshimoto’s six abstract sculptures are made from California redwood salvaged from near his home in Inverness. His appreciation and thorough understanding for the trees stems from his 20 year-long career as an arborist. Working with large chunks of raw material, Yoshimoto explores form, slowly peeling back layers to create both functional and sculptural pieces.
Finally, Hamana’s signature painted ceramic pots, imbued with the beauty of imperfection and the ephemeral, riff on both traditional and abstracted forms, inspired by his daily life as an organic rice farmer, fisherman and artist. The majority of his creative work is done by making use of materials available in his living environment, a rural fishing village in Japan’s Chiba prefecture.
'Jinen' is on show at Salmon Creek Farm in Albion, California from 3-5 May 2024
Sculptural work by Ido Yoshimoto
Vessel by Kazunori Hamana
Dan John Anderson sculpture
-
Shigeru Ban wins 2024 Praemium Imperiale Architecture AwardThe 2024 Praemium Imperiale Architecture Award goes to Japanese architect Shigeru Ban
-
Stone Island and New Balance team up for this year’s most sought-after sneakerPart of Stone Island’s monochromatic ‘Ghost’ line, the collaboration is inspired by both brand’s longtime links with British subculture
-
Step inside Apple Park Observatory, the tech giant's new hub for events and innovation in CupertinoApple Park Observatory, unveiled in Cupertino, adds to the tech giant's expansive campus by Foster + Partners in California
-
This remodelled San Francisco family home by MEMarchitecture and Studio Volpe is a masterpiece of soothing modernityA sensitive and coherent approach by the San Francisco-based architects and designers has resulted in a home of tactile beauty, character and comfort
-
First Look: a domestic idyll by Lucy Stark and Fabien Cappello at the Blunk SpaceInspired by the life and times at JB Blunk's haven of a house in Inverness, a new exhibition of paintings and objects has us dreaming of California
-
Los Angeles gallery Marta explores the enduring inspiration of grottos with an ethereal, multi-sensory group showAt Marta, guest curator Krista Mileva-Frank exhibits work by 13 contemporary talents that demonstrate how the Renaissance-era grotto continues to fuel our imagination
-
Postcard from Lower Manhattan’s burgeoning gallery districtFrom Collectible New York 2024 to Tribeca’s expanding gallery district a few blocks north, collectible design abounds this September
-
First look: Commune Design’s Muffin collection looks good enough to eatLos Angeles design practice Commune and London’s George Smith celebrate a decade of collaboration with a new furniture range
-
One to Watch: Haus of Hommeboys’ new furniture is inspired by the golden hues of California and its ebony veining left by wildfiresHaus of Hommeboys, by Austin Carrier and Alex Mutter-Rottmayer, is a custom millwork and cabinetry studio, and furniture atelier creating ‘objects that feel worthy of being called art ’
-
First look: Ini Archibong explores 2D design with Dr Dre and Snoop Dogg for new canned gin drink‘I had to make sure that the packaging looks like it deserves to be in their hands’: Ini Archibong tells us what it was like working with music giants Dre Dre and Snoop Dogg on their new canned ‘Gin & Juice'
-
Studio Shamshiri and Abask unite on the softest interior décor collectionLA-based Studio Shamshiri joins forces with Abask on a new collaboration of interior objects including pillows, throws, and eyemasks
