About the artwork

Deep in the mountains of Matsunoyama Town, two hamlets—Kotani and Mizunashi—lie on opposite sides of a hill. The sculptural installation “Storehouse of Names” combines the dual meanings of a meeting place for these two hamlets and a storehouse for rice. Installed in a plaza near the edge of the forest, the form of the installation evokes a gathering place. Two openings for entering the artwork were placed on the same line as the plaza’s entrance.Walls are formed by numerous small winter vessels, like rice bowls that fit in the palm of your hand. Workshops were held in Matsunoyama to create these vessels. There, local residents and student volunteers carved their own names or family names into each vessel they made. The vessels are arranged on shelves with the names facing inward, becoming the Storehouse of Names for the two settlements’ archives.