Mariko Mori: Rebirth, Burlington Gardens, Until 17 February 2013
Anyone in central London looking to escape Christmas frenzy or the end of the world – due today, apparently – would do well to head for the Royal Academy in Burlington Gardens and this wonderful exhibition by New York based Japanese artist Mariko Mori
This is work to calm and rebalance the mind, inviting reflection on life’s cycle of death and rebirth, and our connection to the natural world.
Mariko Mori Tom Na H-Iu II, 2005-06. © Mariko Mori Studio
Photo: Richard Learoyd
When I visited earlier this week I could have stayed for hours in the room with Tom Na-Iu II. The large totem stands alone in a white room, pulsing with light. Five metres high, it is lit from within by hundreds of LED lights and connected to Super Kamiokande, Institute for Cosmic Ray Research at The University of Tokyo. The observatory, apparently, detects neutrinos emitted by the sun and other such phenomena which the work displays in real time, in constantly changing light patterns. Awesome. Worth the ticket price for this alone.
Fascinated equally by ancient cultures and cutting-edge science, Mori draws on the aesthetics of Shintoism, Buddhism, astronomy, particle physics and technology. I particularly enjoyed White Hole, to be found in a dark space at the end of a spiraling white corridor. A helpful attendant lights the way for you with a torch.
Whatever transpires on 21 December 2012 – end of the world or start of a
new era – either way, sitting with one of Mori’s installations, you’d be in a
good place.
On until Sunday 17 February 2013, 10am – 6pm daily (last admission 5.30pm). Late night opening: Fridays until 10pm (last admission 9.30pm) £10 full price, concessions available
For more information visit the website of the Royal Academy, here.
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