Hirakawa and Topunova for Santorini Biennale

August 15th, 2012

24° Studio, a New York architectural firm comprised of Japanese and Russian principals has presented a striking site-specific installation as part of the inaugural Santorini Biennale in Greece.

Exemplifying the notion of the world as a global community, this cross-cultural melange has resulted in a beautiful construction that marries the intricacy and consideration of contemporary fine arts within a setting steeped in historical significance.

’Seeing the future through the perspective of the past’, was the brief. A chance to interpret History, Time, Memory and Nostalgia in Pyrgos Village’s ancient tunnel, leading from the township’s square to the sacred mountain behind.

The tunnel, itself an ode to the past, presented an opportunity for Fumio Hirakawa and Marina Topunova to interpret the passage of time – both metaphorical and literal – in a timespan that sat within the Biennale’s program resulting in the evocative installation: Daphne.

The self-supporting structure, paper in fabrication, is expected to weaken and wane in time – spotlighting the antiquity of the setting.

The arch, with its gaps and canopy draws the visitor’s attention from the Kasteli they are journeying toward and back into the time wearied tunnel they are using, all the while celebrating its irregularities and rusticity.

Santorini Biennale

santorinibiennale.gr

24° Studio

24d-studio.com

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