Currently living and working in Kyoto, Japan, Teppei Kaneuji dismantles daily objects and recombines them as components of his works, thereby demolishing their originally implied meanings. Kaneuji articulates that when an object becomes a part of an artwork, it is freed from its original role. This way of expression reflects the unique perspective of the artist who does not view objects merely for the purpose of use. He believes that every object embodies a spirit, a belief that is common in Japanese culture and frequently appears in movies and manga.

Teppei Kaneuji’s works reflect various elements of Japanese culture such as manga and toy culture. Kaneuji separated and extracted segments of manga to create different shapes in the series Games, Dance, and Constructions. Furthermore, he screen-printed those shapes onto paper, woods, or stuffed models and then combined those pieces together without explicit rules or restrictions, as a child randomly stacking up blocks. Another series Teenage Fan Club, inspired by audience’s swinging hairs at a concert, is in similar context. The artist separated hair parts from toy figures and used them to develop into a separate piece of artwork.

Liberation from general rules or patterns can also be found in the White Discharge series where Teppei Kaneuji portrays flowing liquid. Instead of using plaster, fiber glass, and resin in their common use, Kaneuji applied them to erase or cover parts of the works. Therefore, by repeatedly dripping down liquid on the combined forms, the artist brings a change to the appearance and meaning of the objects and creates an illusion of flowing liquid.

In Teppei Kaneuji’s first solo exhibition in Korea at ONE AND J. Gallery, Sweet Pickled Phantom, Kaneuji presents four different series of wall pieces, sculptures, installation, and a video. He also showcases his new artwork, White Discharge (Built-up Objects #43) which was created out of items collected from places such as Korea’s folk flea markets, toy markets, and Eulji-ro district. Each of Kaneuji’s works floats like islands in the gallery space. This may seem like an accidental shape created from irregular combinations, but it is in fact a carefully constructed harmony. 

–Kyungmin Lee, Curator 

Press release courtesy ONE AND J. Gallery.