|
|
German Culture Village Ueno (Doitsumura)
Miyakojima, Okinawa / Japan
Title: “On Absence/Presence“
Year: 1998
Material: Miyako rim stone, 2-part
Dimensions: 200 (H) x 105 x 88 cm
Location: Park of the “German Culture Village“
In the Ueno community on Miyakojima island, Japan
Miyakojima belongs to the Ryukyu island chain, whose main island is Okinawa.
The “German Culture Village Ueno” is village built in the 1990s that is dedicated to German culture. In addition to other buildings, the park contains a copy of the Marksburg am Rhine. The relationship to Germany began with the rescue of ship-wrecked Germans by the island inhabitants in the year 1873.
Their ship sank on Miyako island coral riff. The reigning monarch at the time, Kaiser Wilhelm I, subsequently donated the helpful island population a memorial obelisk.
The sculptor developed the idea for the sculpture from various insights and experiences on the island. This included the topics of shipwreck, absence/presence,
threat of an approaching typhoon, diving in the coral reef and the experience of a totally different, silent world.
The shaking earth
The sculpture was created on the island in the summer of 1998 from a stone which resembles rim stone. It is form from deposited coral and is quarried on the island.
The sculpture was installed on a broad grassy area of the park. It creates its own location here which provides orientation.
Photo: Holger Walter
|
|
|
