Month: May 2024

At first glance, it might seem that trampolines and the spark of artistic creation are entirely unrelated. I discovered how intimately and interestingly connected they could be. When one speaks of artistic creation, it tends to evoke the image of someone peacefully painting in front of a canvas or sculpting clay. So, when I visited the Atelier Hiko, a small-size black trampoline set in the corner attracted my attention. One might wonder what it is doing in an art studio.

Machitaka-san, who attends Artier Hiko every Tuesday, is an active fourteen-year-old boy sporting surprisingly sinewy muscles within his thin body. At 4p.m., he came barging in to the Atelier with the force of a typhoon. Right away, he started to arrange the spacing of the furniture to his own proper proportions – all the chairs in line, the desks divided by the proper distance and everything in its place.

“What is going on?” I thought. As I was trying to figure out the situation, he had already picked up the trampoline from the corner. Very conscious of his surroundings, he made precise adjustments to the positions of the surrounding chairs and desks before placing the trampoline in the middle of the room. Then from a menu-like booklet, he selected a picture card representing a music song. He handed his choice to Ishizaki-san, which I perceived as another significant step in his preparations.

With great anticipation, Michitaka-san went to the trampoline. As the music began, he hopped on with a conspicuous sense of happiness. As if he were a metronome, the piano played along to his well-controlled rhythm. His T-shirt swayed loosely, its slogan “Just do it” seemed to match his dynamic energy.

“He is making a sequence of fast body movements as well as spontaneously incorporating the changes!” I thought. The image reminded me of a trampoline gymnast. On top of controlling the speed of his jumps, I guessed he might be targeted to achieve some awesome movements.

His control reminded me of gymnasts’ determination and skill.  For a moment, I didn’t know whether I was in an atelier or at a sports studio. I wondered what acrobatics he might achieve upon a full-sized trampoline. As an audience, I was eager to applaud his wonderful performance!

Jumping quickly, the excitement built up. Machitaka-san’s face blushed warmly and a bright smile emerged. “So is Machitaki-san, so is Hiko-kun…” as Ishizaki-san’s song drew to a close, his pace accordingly slowed down. I thought his energy was spent, but he promptly went to a nearby desk. With vigorous force, he started to draw with black ink.    

Within just six seconds, a painting began to take shape on the paper. Four circles, reminiscent of the Olympic logo, yet imperfect in shape, were linked together. Each brush stroke conveyed a strong force. “Wait, is it painting or calligraphy?” I pondered. In the way it was painted, it could be seen as four geometric shapes yet it could also be read as four written characters. Zero or circle, character or image, it was impossible for me to decide.

As I was trying to seek for an answer, I found out that they were high-fiving, as if celebrating an awesome accomplishment. “That’s it!” I came to a realization. The art work that Michitaka-san made was not just a solo work; instead, it was a fruitful result of his teamwork with Ishizaki-san.

It was the culmination of arranging the space and the canvas, moving within that space, connecting through music and finally creating his own unique art. For this artist, I felt the whole room was his canvas.

Is this any different than the great calligraphers, preparing their brushes, inks and paper and meditating before making the first brush stroke?

A peaceful meditation, playing an instrument, taking a stroll or intensely bouncing on a trampoline, warming-up is an essential part in the act of artistic creation.

(日本語 編集協力:  石﨑史子)

アトリエひこを訪れる度に、小さな黒いトランポリンが部屋の隅に置かれているのを見ている。芸術の創作というと、キャンバスの前で静かに描くイメージを思い浮かべがちだ。トランポリンと芸術創造は一見関係なさそうに思える。私はどんな面白い繋がりが存在しているのか知らなかった。

火曜日のメンバーである道隆さんは瘦せ型で筋肉をつけつつある十四歳の少年。午後四時頃、アトリエ部屋に入るなり、わくわくして、椅子を並べたり、二つの机を分けたり、空間位置を変えたりしていた。

何が起こっているのか。私が頭を抱えているうちに、彼はトランポリンを隅から拾い上げた。空間に意識を持っているようで、トランポリンを部屋の真ん中に置く前に、周囲の椅子と机の位置を微調整した。準備に手落ちがないように、もう一つ大切な項目は、メニューみたいな冊子から音楽曲の絵カードを選び、石﨑さんへ渡すことだ。

待ちきれない道隆さんはいよいよ楽しそうにトランポリンで飛び跳ね始めた。石﨑さんの弾くピアノ音楽とともに、「Just do it」と書かれたTシャツが彼のジャンプに合わせて上下に揺れていた。音楽のテンポが速くなると、彼は高く飛び上がるほど興奮し、体の動きも活発になっていた。足を前に蹴り出し、手も振っていた。

それほど速やかに動きながらも、即興的に動きの変化を取り入れる道隆さんは私にトランポリン体操選手を思い起こさせた。ジャンプのスピードを自分でコントロールしたうえで、かっこいい動きに挑戦しているのだろうか。

一瞬、アトリエにいるのか、スポーツ会場にいるのか、私はわからなかった。観客として彼の素晴らしいパフォーマンスに拍手を送りたい！

盛り上がりつつ、道隆さんの顔が赤くなり、笑みが浮かんでいるのが見えた。「道隆さんもアイーン、ひこくんもアイーン…」っと、石﨑さんの歌が終わりに近づくと、彼も自然にスピードを落とした。終わりだと思ってたけど、彼は近くの机に直ちに歩いて、勢いよく黒いインクで描いた。

たった6秒ぐらいで、四つのオリンピックのロゴみたいな丸が並んできて、一枚の絵が紙の上に現れた。いいえ、書道なのか。円として見ることもできるが、ゼロとして読み取ることもできる。はっきり判断するのは本当に難しい。

それが何なのか尋ねようとしたが、彼らは祝うかのようにハイタッチすることがわかった。ああ、なるほど！道隆さんのやってきた作品は、単なるソロ作品ではなく、石﨑さんとのチームワークの作品になるのだろうか。

ジャンプしたり、歌ったりすることに続いて、間髪入れずに絵や書が生じる。そういう身体的関係が理論としてあるのかどうかわからないけど、中国の書道家で似ている創作過程を見たことがある。筆を執る前に、作者は目を閉じて瞑想し、始まると、すべての文字を一気に書いた。

静かな瞑想と、片や激しいジャンプ。どちらもウォーミングアップとして大切な時間であり恩恵を受けているのだろう。

Aki-san is quite tall. I wondered if it was because of his height that he developed a unique perspective from others. I found out he possesses many more abilities.

The first time when I visited Atelier Hiko, I was immediately attracted by a piece of Aki-san’s painting that was set at the entrance. On a one-meter square canvas, there was drawn a blue human face, composed of several circles and no pupils in the eyes.

At a glance, I felt a bit scared, however, I couldn’t help but continue to look and discern more details. Directly beneath the human face was a square-shaped white space occupying the center of the canvas, completely without paint. Meanwhile, outside the white space was filled with blue.

If there was a human face, shouldn’t there be human hands, body or legs, I wondered? Yet where were these parts? The more I searched for a specific answer, the more chaotic it seemed to me. My usual thought processes failed to apply to this scenario. 

As I was gazing at the painting with confusion, Aki-san, instead, was confidently adding colors on the canvas. “Sa, sa, sa,” he hummed. Without hesitation, he quickly moved the paintbrush in random-seeming strokes. The newly painted blue covered the previous one on the canvas, so the two shades of blue quickly overlapped each other.

Rather than regarding it as painting, in my perspective, the paintbrush, as if it was not trapped by anything, was freely dancing on the stage of the white canvas. I was so immersed in watching this scenario that I didn’t notice Aki-san had left his seat.

Just like an orchestra conductor, Aki-san raised his index fingers up in the air. Following that, I heard music played on the piano. From the back of the room, Ishizaki-san was sitting in front of the white piano, playing pleasant music while singing a song. The name Aki was included in her lyrics.

What happened? Did the two of them just spontaneously mirror each other’s actions?

I was amazed at how incredible it was. Aki-san started dancing to the music, spinning like a ballroom performer, and spun to the back of the room.  Humming along with the on-going music, he picked up a reed pen and began drawing with ink on a piece of paper set on the table.   

Far different from what was painted about the human face, the objects drawn on the paper were so much more recognizable. The shapes of the piano Ishizaki-san was playing, a dessert plate and a cup were drawn with lifelike proportions, in his own unique style.

The outlines of objects in Aki-san’s drawings, rather than being a boundary between objects and space, seem to create connection from one object to another. Furthermore, presenting the objects through this impressionism of their outlines seems to provide some sense of freedom.

I can’t help but wonder if that impression remained so strong from his observation of objects while he orbited the studio. While I tend to get caught up in the details of art, Aki-san seems to embrace a more flexible view of things. I’m so jealous of that freedom!

（日本語 編集協力:  石﨑史子）

あきさんは背が高い。そのため、彼ならではの視点があるのではと思ったが、実際はそれ以上だった。

初めてアトリエひこを訪れた時、入口近くにあきさんの青い絵があり、目を引いた。縦と横とも1メートルぐらいの大きさのキャンバスに青い顔が描かれた。顔はいくつかの円で構成され、その丸い目には瞳孔がない。

一見すると少し怖いかもしれないけど、細部ををもっと詳しく見たくなる。顔のすぐ下には、正方形ような白いスペースの中で何も描いていなく、キャンパスが空のまま残っている。一方で、白いスペースの外に、青い色がいっぱい入っている。

人の顔があれば、人の手、体や足があるはずじゃないだろうか。で、どこに描かれたのか。私は具体的な答えを探せば探すほど、ますます混乱していた。通常の考え方は全然適用できないように感じられた。

この絵をじっと見つめていて困っている私は、あきさんがキャンバスにしっかりと青色を塗っている姿を見た。「さささ…」っと、躊躇せずにさっと絵筆を動かした。描き出した青色が元の青色を覆って、すぐに新旧青色が重なり合ってしまう。

描くというより、筆が何も閉じ込められることなく、自由にキャンバスを舞台に踊ると言える。私はそんな描き方に夢中になっているところに、あきさんが席を離れていた。

オーケストラを指揮しているかのように、あきさんが人差し指を空中に上げているのが見えた。続いて、ピアノによる音楽が聞こえた。部屋の奥に、石﨑さんは一台白い電子ピアノの前に座り、心地よい音楽を演奏しながら歌っていた。「あきちゃん」を含む言葉も歌詞に入ってきた。

あれ？二人は阿吽の呼吸で音楽を作っているんだろうか。

不思議だと考えていると、あきさんが音楽に合わせて踊ったり、社交ダンスのような回転をしたり、部屋の奥に移動していった。音楽が続くにつれて、彼はハミングしながら、もう一本の葦ペンを手に取って墨で机上の紙に絵を描き始めた。

キャンバスに描いた人の顔とは大きく異なり、紙に描かれた物体はより認識しやすくなった。石﨑さんの弾いているピアノだったり、デザートとコップだったり、その形は私たちの目にする物に近い。でも、明らかに違いがある。

あきさんの描いた絵では、物の輪郭線は物と空間の境界線というより、一筆書きのように物から物へ繋がりがありそうだ。さらに、輪郭線は物から脱出するような自由になりそうだ。

さすが彼が体を動かしながら、物を観察した印象はそれなのだろうかと思わずにはいられない。私の物をじっと見つめる見方とは全然違う。細かいことにとらわれがちな私と異なり、あきさんの描き方も動き方も、もっと自由に見る方法を持っていそうだ。その自由がとても羨ましい！