Reversible Garden
2024, Installation / mixed media, dimensions variable
Keelung Museum of Art, Taiwan
Japanese artist Suzuki Yuya often bases his work on “street observation” style field research. For this project, he was invited to Keelung to conduct an on-site investigation, focusing on small gardens in front of houses. These “temporary gardens” are personal and yet public, forming a system with casually-placed objects and natural elements (water, soil, and plants). Suzuki abstracts these elements into drawings and creates several playful, colorful sculptures.
Reversible Garden not only refers to the literal space that mediates between “private gardens” and “public spaces,” but it also carries a metaphorical meaning. The “private garden” symbolizes an individual’s inner world and memories, while the “public space” suggests the systems of material and consumer society contrasted with personal inner realms. By abstracting the elements he observed, Suzuki constructs an imaginative garden rich in layered meanings, exploring the connection and tension between humans and their surrounding environment.