Questions and Answers Time
Audience Congratulations on the opening of the 10th Anniversary of the International Exhibition of Glass Kanazawa. I think it timely for me to ask you my question.
This exhibition started in 1984 and since then it has been convened here in Kanazawa for more than 20 years, while glass art competitions have been decreasing in number, I’m afraid. I guess there have been various reasons for the organizers. For those who have applied for competitions, competitions used to provide the gateway to success. However, it seems to me that today the concept of competitions has been vague for both organizers and applicants. If the jurors have some opinions on the concept of competitions or the future visions for this exhibition in Kanazawa, please let me know.
Takeda I’m afraid that the jurors will have difficulty in answering your question. Should the Executive Committee, the Design Center Ishikawa, answer your question?
Audience I think that the jurors have been involved in how the exhibition should be developed. So only about this particular exhibition, I’d like to know how it should be developed.
Takeda About the future vision? Who would like to talk with?
Audience If some jurors have some opinions, I’d really like to listen to them.
Takeda I understand. So I’d like the jurors to make opinions on your hopes and requests as to how this exhibition or competition should be developed toward the future
Harcuva I think that Kanazawa is known for the competition for every artist. It’s possible to make a special competition for young artists. It very often happens. It could be organized by school, by other organizations. If it is only limited by age, so it could hardly be what this is now.
Takeda Thank you. Mr. Chritensen, any opinions or comments on this matter?
Christensen Yes, you’re right. We have changed very much. First of all, the change is that 30 years ago when the studio glass movement started up, all the studio glass artists could count altogether maybe 100 or so. Today it’s thousands of thousands and it’s very difficult to have an outstanding success.
The problem will always be that it is still call for the young artists to come to the ideas and absorbed by the art critics and by the general public and so on. We have had many other ways today but it is difficult.
Today another information is spread world-wide by computer. So that’s now possible to perhaps sometimes make statement of what’s going on, where we also have reached from generation to generation. The International Exhibition of Glass Kanazawa or this competition is one of the very few very good possibilities in this direction. But you can still find competition for young glass artists, for example, in my country Denmark, an exhibition of nearly the same size and so many different countries represent in the same way as in the exhibition here. It’s also one of the possibilities.
Takeda Thank you. Please go ahead, Mr. Harcuba.
Harcuva I’d like to mention another competition. It was in Koganesaki one year ago, and it was also an open competition for everybody but from the six prizes, five prizes went to young girls between 25 and 30 years old. It was amazing that only one man about in his 40’s was among them. It was very nice. Also that competition some of the young people from Koganesaki have been successful even today.
Takeda Mr. Myers, please go ahead.
Myers Has this competition on your part, has the purpose of this competition prevented you from entering competition.
Audience No, I don’t think so, myself.
Myers One of the things that I’ve noticed, one of the things that I wanted to say before was that if you’re looking at the body of work that was selected, there are a very few what I would call functional pieces of glass and that’ s why I was happy to discover Mr.Christensen selected for him glass forms that were essentially for traditional in a sense of Japanese character and love of boxes but also that they could be used. So I wonder whether the confusion lies in the fact that should be making sculpture or doesn’t it matter as long it’s good and recognized.
Takeda Those answers are enough, I hope. Any other questions ?
