youki hirakawa

Years Later 1918-2019

Years Later 1918-2019 / 2019

Single Channel Video Installation / 4K / Silent / Approx.9min

While Hirakawa researches Japanese lost films, he noticed one fact. It is that, even though the rate of disappearance of Japanese prewar films is high, lots of bromide and still photography related to these films have been existing even now.
Having observed and carefully looked over these related documents, Hirakawa recreated the stage setting which may have been used in the film in the past in his studio. However, the artist did not aim to perfectly reproduce this stage setting.
There happened to be an inevitable ‘difference’ between the one from over 100 years ago in the process of recreating.
His imagination was stimulated by especially this distortion.

The stage setting after the characters have gone away. The space which once existed is still left as a photography.
Remains of various stories were scattered here and there. The artist rearranged these fragments and reproduced a new story (thing). Over hundreds of years later, the fragments of history will be told again. Hirakawa brings them back to life as a mysterious and tranquil film world.