Present Encounters : Papers from the conference of the Second Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, Brisbane, 1996

This next work is called Transformation Kit wh ich is a fu ll-size bib & brace overall made from fake fur and a brassiere for men and men's underpants for women . There is a sense of humour which questions the appearance and content. This work questions the sexual differences. Emiko Kasahara Kasahara's works are very strong symbolic objects and the traces or processes in her work cannot be seen as they are presented in a perfect method in a very unemotional way. UNTITLED - Three Types is a work in which three beds are placed withi n an overall white space. On each bed is placed a lidded stainless steel tube in l i ne with a human orifice. The tubes are lined with rubber so that a feeling for organic matter can be sensed . This work questions va rying types of sexual communication as well as the issue of A I DS. The next work is Dummy, wh ich is the first object that human babies a re allowed to place in their mouths and is a breast substitute. I n this work, a double mean i ng is given to the dummy as being a sexual object. Untitled - double urinal is a work, the shape of wh ich represents a u ri nal for men but the lower half is in the form of a breast. This shows a symbol of bi-sexuality and also considers the spirit of modem women and the basic aspects of being human regardless of gender. 2 . Expression Born from Trad ition Kaoru Hirabayashi Hirabayashi works on the theme of a Japanese alphabet. About 1 , 300 years ago Chinese writing characters were introduced to Japan. Later, Japanese women developed a simplified set of letters called Hiragana which were derived from these Chi nese characters. Therefore, the artist regards Chinese characters as a male symbol and Hiragana as a female symbol . 51 Letters - Spirit of Words is a work wh ich is deeply rooted in the Japanese belief that words possess their own spirit or sou l . This is a work for reconsideri ng the h istorical and cultural roots of Japan. Miki Gotoh This instal lation uses ceramics as its medium and this work implies the lives of our agricultural ancestors. Yuki Kaneko This work also uses ceramics as its medium and this jar-like object possesses an innate fundamental energy of life with strong dynamics. Takako Kamo Her work uses paper as a medium and implies nest-building of birds or bagworms. It expresses a question towards modern life and the approach for coexistence with nature . 3. Expressions of Social Issues Keiko I ida This work is called Barter in which red vinyl tiles are laid upon the gallery floor and on each tile there is an object and these objects may be exchanged by viewers with somethi ng they wish to leave in its place . As the exchange is being made, a Polaroid photo records the event. As the number of exchanges i ncrease so does the vol umes of photos. I'll Take It - Barter is a work in which a genuine ¥1 ,000 note is framed and prospective viewers bring goods of such value to exchange and these are then exhibited . These two works present the structure of goods distribution across society by playing it out in the gallery . He r exh ibition was special in that the artist was able t o incorporate t he basics o f capital ism and make 'play' out of it within limited time and space . Minako Nishiyama Hello Pink is a work which simulates sex telephone clubs in Japan withi n an art gallery venue. Pink cherry blossom symbols a re pasted on walls and ceiling which are actually name labels worn by elementary school ch ildren. At the centre of these displays is a busi ness-card 1 1 6