Japanese unbaked pottery

Story 8. Hole

This piece is a continuation of “In between of the panels” (‘Panels’). “Panels” explored the theme of gaps in everyday life.

The present piece, titled “Hole,” transforms a gap, pushing it to expand into a large, round cavity. It’s a circular opening simplified by isolating only the essence of the “gap.”

The hole connects the current space with a different dimension.

It’s the Pass Loop from Doraemon, a mouth of Vanilla Ice from JOJO’s stand which can swallow everything in its path, the ring connecting the stars in the movie “Stargate”, the loop-shaped warp gate from Doctor Strange, and also the hole in Shin’s chest from Parasyte – the one could be considered a hole in the back as well.

Through the previous stages of production, I have come to the realization that the fundamental significance of adorning a wall with flowers is to alter the boundaries between the internal and external, between oneself and others.

This vase creates a large hole in the “wall,” serving as the boundary.

What lies beyond the round hole is another world.

Would you feel uneasy if there was a big hole in the wall of your room?

Round and Quadrilateral: Uniqueness in the "Circle" Shape

Doors and windows serve as entrances and exits to spaces within a room. Most windows and doors are rectangular, likely due to the convenience of architectural structures, ease of construction, and user-friendliness.

Conversely, round windows and doors are reserved for special cases.

Doors serve as passages to move between spaces. “Round,” however, implies more than just movement — it carries the meaning of connecting to a special space.

This difference may be easier to understand when comparing Doraemon’s future tools, the ‘Anywhere Door,’ and the “Pass Loop.”

The “Anywhere Door” is a rectangular door, while the “Pass Loop” is round. It doesn’t function as a passing-through door.
Using the “Pass Loop” isn’t just about moving through space; there’s a secret and thrilling feeling, as if I’m doing something slightly sinister— not just moving through space, but “passing through” it.

A "Round" that transcends the ordinary and oneself.

There is a term called “Ten-en-chi-hou” that represents the ancient Chinese cosmological perspective: “the sky is round and the earth is square.”

In ancient China, circular and spherical shapes were utilized as symbols representing “heaven.” Conversely, the ground we inhabit takes on a square shape in relation to the sky.

“Heaven” represents higher-order concepts such as God, destiny, nature, etc., perceived as entities stronger than one’s own thoughts and actions.

On the other hand, squares and rectangles represent our world. The square symbolizes the normal and everyday world, providing a sense of ordinary comfort and security in daily life.

If a round hole were to appear on the wall of a room, you would likely have a special impression of what might come out of it and where it would lead.

Hole vase

A round hole that suddenly appears in a square room literally punches a hole in the world shaped within the confines of everyday life.

I become aware of a hole at the boundary between my inner world, which I don’t usually notice, and the outer world.

Examining that hole closely is an act of peering into whether what you took for granted is indeed true and uncovering what lies beneath.

In the world that I thought was normal, there is a bottomless hole.
There’s a hole in my heart that others might not notice, and perhaps I’m not even aware of it myself.

If you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss also gazes into you.

Nietzsche

In the midst of our everyday lives, we may suddenly come face to face with something fundamental.

For instance, it could be a moment when your belief in what is right is shaken, when you confront something, you’ve been pretending not to notice, or when something you considered distant becomes familiar to you. (Such as issues related to inequality, morality, justice, selfishness/altruism, differences in principles, etc.)

When people encounter discomfort, they may attempt to perceive the situation objectively, compare it with their own values, or question the validity of their beliefs.

Then, we try to understand our own hearts, believing that at the bottom of our hearts lies the source and standard of our final emotions, which cannot be fully comprehended by our minds.

Search for your own answers by dismantling assumptions based on past experiences, societal norms, and common sense.

As you delve into the depths of your heart, you become aware that the very process is also influenced by something. Despite being surrounded by things you don’t understand, you will eventually touch upon something fundamental.

What will you see at the bottom of that abyss, the hole in your heart?
I want to discover beauty and find peace there.

About production

Black paint

I used black paint with a 0.6% reflectance that doesn’t reflect light. It aims for an effect that is as close to pitch black as possible, creating the appearance of a hole in space.

This vase has a real hole in the center, leading to a small vase on the back where you can place flowers.

Does it appear as if flowers are growing in an empty space?

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