Tokyo Space Out

Misaki Kawai’s “Space House” at the new ICA in Boston

By Emily Sweeney

Boston’s Institute of Contemporary Art, known affectionately as the ICA, isn’t new, but its gorgeous waterfront location on Northern Avenue is. The “new” ICA features wonderfully fluid open gallery space, a 325-seat theater, an education center, and a breathtaking “mediatheque”; a gallery of computer stations that features a unique view of the water at an angle, eliminating both sky and horizon. The Institute also hosts an ongoing “Momentum” series, which, now on its seventh show, is home to Japanese-born Misaki Kawai’s installation piece “Space House.”

There are two stock comments in the vocabulary of the inexperienced modern-art critic, namely, “That’s not art” and “My kid can do that.” Misaki Kawaki’s fresh, quirky take on modern art can warrant neither of these. Traditionally “artsy-craftsy” and undeniably talented, Kawaki has created a world that is both delightfully childlike and wonderfully sophisticated.

“Space House” is an installation piece composed of extraordinary miniature 3-dimensional rooms full of little people doing ordinary things such as cooking, playing music, and watching TV. The magic of this piece, however, is in its construction. Kawai, who is the daughter of a seamstress and an architect, has created these little houses out of such materials as papier-mache, fabric, stickers, and yarn. Upon first glance, the piece seems haphazardly constructed, even childish; but upon closer inspection, it’s impossible not to get lost in the painstakingly beautiful detail of “Space House.”

The craftiness of her work is juxtaposed by an ever-present technology; tinny rock music playing in one space, a little working “TV” blaring in another, and the residents’ faces, which appear to be copies of photographs. The result is a tiny fantasy world full of detail, color, and whimsy that is both timeless and catapulting fiercely into the 21st century, part hippie commune, part Tokyo meets the space age. In a time where so much contemporary art is dishearteningly fatalistic, the postmodern “Space House” is full of life and optimism. If only the tiny people lucky enough to live in this delightful little world knew how lucky they are!

(100 Northern Avenue, Boston, MA: “Momentum” shows until July 8; General admission $12; Closed Mondays)

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