In the new year, London’s Tate Modern will play host to an exciting display that will see art enthusiasts immersed in artificial fog. The performance art exhibition will be staged outside the gallery’s new Switch House and will be the first BMW Tate Live exhibition which is to become an annual event.
Created by Japanese artist Fujiko Nakaya, the display will feature a number of shrouded sculptures made from water vapour. These figures will be accompanied by performing dancers and drummers of all kinds.
Live installations will be made in and above the Tate Modern’s underground Tanks, which the gallery said will “provide visitors with a distinctive location in which to engage with new art in a new way”.
The BMW Tate Live exhibition titled ‘Ten Days Six Nights’ combines installation, performance, film, video, sound, and talks from various artists over a period of ten days from March 24th to April 2nd 2017.
Artists involved in the display create images of participation that link the natural environment with social media; organic and technological, human and non-human, claims the gallery. For example, artist Isabel Lewis will be filling a whole room full of plants with hopes to combine music, food, drink and scent to create an alternative environment for dance and discussions.
Tate Modern’s director of exhibitions Achim Borchardt-Hume commented on the upcoming show: “Our culture is always changing, and so exhibitions must change too. In our connected digital age, artists and audiences are ever more fascinated by live experiences, shared in the moment with those around them.”
Throughout her career, Nakaya has investigated the elements of water, instilling a sense of wonder in everyday weather phenomena. At the 1970 World Exposition in Osaka, she worked as part of the Experiments in Art and Technology (EAT) group, submerging the Pepsi Pavilion in vaporous fog, becoming the first artist to create a sculptural fog environment.
It is believed that her interest in this area stems from her father, who has been credited with making the first artificial snowflakes.
“Walking inside fog, people are suddenly confronted with white darkness, but soon they find themselves trying to use all the senses other than the visual to orient themselves,” explained Nakaya.
“People love the feel of fog on their skin, immersed, wet and cold, but gentle and soothing. It’s a primary experience.”
Previous installations include exhibitions at the Grand Palais in Paris and Frank Gehry’s Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao.
According to Tate Modern, tickets will be on sale in December 2016 when the full programme is announced. The ‘Ten Days Six Nights’ exhibition is organised by senior curator of international art (film) Andrea Lissoni, senior curator of international art (performance) Isabella Maidment and assistant curator Carly Whitefield.