twelve travels

Andy Goldsworthy, Maple Leaves

Ouchiyama-mura, 19 November 1991*

Amidst all the hustle and bustle of this most hectic of months, it is just so good to find an archipelago of peace and quiet, especially in the company of a friend. An imaginary archipelago that bears, of course, little resemblance to the geographical Britain from where these twelve artists come or through which they have passed. They take us not just on twelve, but on innumerable travels in space and time, from the picturesque and pastoral landscapes of Constable and Turner, through Mona Hatoum's exilic territories, to Andy Goldworthy's and David Nash's ephemeral encounters with the natural elements: stone, snow, frost, water, leaves, wood...

An afternoon is too little time to take it all in, and I do hope to return - at least to be astounded again by Goldsworthy and Nash. Words fail me when I try to describe the moving, inspirational beauty of their art. I shall return there - and here, as soon as time allows.

The exhibition Twelve Travels: British Art in Sensibility and Experience is currently at the Setagaya Art Museum in Tokyo, and will be running till March 1.

*Image taken from the website of the Tochigi Prefectural Museum of Fine Arts.