Exhibition

Jamais vu / Déjà vu / Lưu động

By Kuwakubo Ryota

Exhibition

Art Tour

A Japanese Artist Reimagines Hanoi Through Light and Shadow

Have you ever looked at something deeply familiar – an object you see every day – and suddenly felt it become strangely unfamiliar, as if you had never seen it before?

For the first time ever, from March 22 to May 24, 2026, Japan Foundation Center for Cultural Exchange in Vietnam is proud to present “Jamais vu / Déjà vu / Lưu động” – an exhibition that offers a fascinating and contemplative exploration of Hanoi. Two new artworks by Kuwakubo Ryota – an internationally recognized “device art” artist, are created and showcased especially for this occasion, based on his personal encounter with the city and as a presentation after his field trip last year.

Most of the materials used in the exhibition are everyday objects readily found and purchased in Hanoi. One installation reexamines the sense of familiarity and strangeness – jamais vu and déjà vu – through Hanoi landscapes constructed from the shadows of ordinary household items. By suspending their practical functions as tools, Kuwakubo invites viewers to rediscover these objects in their purest form. Simple in structure yet intricate in execution, the installation promises to captivate audience of all ages. Through the second installation, the artist looks to convey the dynamism of the city’s traffic with delicate composition of wooden rods and a mobile lighting system, referencing Alexander Calder’s famous kinetic work “Small Sphere and Heavy Sphere” in New York in 1932.

Kuwakubo Ryota is known for creating device-like installations that transform simple mechanisms into quietly immersive visual experiences. His practice has received wide critical recognition, including Excellence Prize at the 14th Japan Media Arts Festival for The Tenth Sentiment (2011), Grand Prize at Rokko Meets Art in 2012 for the LOST series.

This exhibition offers a rare opportunity to rediscover Hanoi from a fresh perspective, no matter if you are a Hanoian or not. Through the interplay of light and dark, hidden landscapes emerge, unconscious associations gradually come into awareness. Meanwhile, the dialogue between stability and mobility reveals the dynamic rhythm of the city’s movement.

For inquiries on the program, please contact:

Ms. Ngoc 024-3944-7419 (ext. 113) / Mr. Osuka (ext. 160)

The Japan Foundation Center for Cultural Exchange in Vietnam

27 Quang Trung, Cua Nam, Hanoi, Vietnam                                              TEL 024-3944-7419

https://www.facebook.com/japanfoundation.vietnam/                     https://hn.jpf.go.jp/

About the Artist

Kuwakubo Ryota is an artist and professor at the Institute of Advanced Media Arts and Sciences (IMAS). He began his career in 1998. Using electronic devices as mediums, he has created a unique style of device-like works that encourage viewers to experience them actively, which is also known as “device art”. His representative works include Bitman, PLX, and Nikodama.

Since the release of The Tenth Sentiment in 2010, he has been creating light and shadow installations (LOST series) that allow viewers to weave their own internal experiences. In addition to his solo work, he works as a unit Perfektron with Reiko Yamaguchi, and was also involved in the composition of Design Ah! Exhibition neo (2025).

[Selected Exhibitions]

• 2001: Credit Game, NTT Intercommunication Center [ICC] (Tokyo, Japan)
• 2003: Cyber Asia, Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art (Hiroshima, Japan)

Exploration of TIME!, National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation (Tokyo, Japan)

• 2004: Nam June Paik Award 2004, Phoenixhalle (Dortmund, Germany)
• 2011: Ways of Worldmaking, The National Museum of Art (Osaka, Japan)

Robotinity, Ars Electronica Center (Linz, Austria)

• 2012: Media City Seoul, Seoul Museum of Art (Korea)

The Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennial (Tokamachi, Japan)

• 2013: Mono no Aware, State Hermitage Museum (Saint Petersburg, Russia)

Media Art / Kitchen, BACC (Bangkok, Thailand)

• 2014: Variations of the Moon, Nam June Paik Art Center (Yongin, Korea)

Kochi-Muziris Biennale 2014 (Kochi, India)

• 2016: Yebisu International Festival for Art & Alternative Visions

Garden in Movement (Tokyo, Japan)

• 2017: Sapporo International Art Festival 2017 (Sapporo, Japan)

THE Doraemon Ten, Mori Arts Center Gallery (Tokyo, Japan)

• 2021: Someone Far Away, Sapporo Cultural Arts Community Center SCARTS (Sapporo, Japan)
• 2022: Scenery of the Emptiness, and Asia, National Asian Culture Center (Gwangju, Korea)

[Selected Solo Exhibitions]

• 2010: Gave: 1 The Waterfall, 2. The Illuminating Gas, AD&A Gallery (Osaka, Japan)
• 2011: The Tenth Sentiment, Galerie Lucy Mackintosh (Lausanne, Switzerland）
• 2016: The 11th Utsunomiya Espérer Award: Kuwakubo Ryota (Tochigi, Japan)
• 2018: All That You See, Ogaki Suitopia Center Art Gallery (Gifu, Japan)
• 2023: Collection Net, Chiba Prefectural Museum of Art (Chiba, japan)

[Awards]

• 2002: Honorary Mention, Interactive Art, Ars Electronica (PLX)
• 2003: Grand Prize, Art Division, Japan Media Arts Festival (Digital Gadget #6,8,9)
• 2010: Excellence Prize, Art Division, Japan Media Arts Festival (The Tenth Sentiment)
• 2010: Jury Selection, Entertainment Division, Japan Media Arts Festival (Nikodama)
• 2011: Art Encouragement Prize for New Artists of Media Arts (The Tenth Sentiment)
• 2012: Grand Prize, Rokko Meets Art 2012 (LOST#7)
• 2013: The 11th Utsunomiya Espérer Award

■ Credits

 Organized by: The Japan Foundation Center for Cultural Exchange in Vietnam

Artwork credit: Kuwakubo Ryota

■ Images for PR and references

Remarks: For the usage of the following images for your media, please kindly put the credit and information below, and please get the original size of the images at: (PR Photo/Ảnh PR)

All photos credit: ©️ Kuwakubo Ryota