Arakawa Amusementpark

video installation/ 2013
 

 Arakawa amusement park is a small amusement park located in an old residential area in Tokyo. Its staff are all Arakawa area officers, and visitors are also people in that district. Its theme song and sounds from each attraction are very familiar for local visitors, and these also inspire their memories. However, all the elements and situations are curious for people who stand in the Arakawa amusement park for the first time. Furthermore, the banal sounds which covers the amusement park may be nuisance for some people. The amusement park has a special atmosphere and there is a special commu- nity. It is like the atmosphere when I enter a park which I have never been to and approaching a group of children I don't know. It feels like I'm not accepted and it makes me feel like running away from there.

 I made an installation work using Arakawa amusement park as my theme. Five televisions were placed on the floor, and five speakers were set around the televisions. Each television and speaker provided different movies and sounds. At the center where many sounds cross, the situation may be nostalgic for viewers who knows Arakawa amusement park, but on the other hand, it is only noise for viewers who do not know it.