Take a virtual tour of Sayaka Ganz: Reclaimed Creations. This installation was at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science in 2020.
Click on the frame below to navigate through a 360 degree tour of the exhibit as it was installed. Click and drag within the tour to look around, or point and click to move to another part of the gallery. Small dots throughout the tour will reveal information about the art work, interviews with artists, high resolution images, and video content.
Artist Statement:
I grew up with Shinto animist belief that all things in the world have spirits. Thus, when I see discarded items on the street or thrift store shelves, I feel a deep sadness for them and I am moved to make these abandoned objects happy. Currently I use mostly common plastic household items to create animal forms with a sense of movement and self-awareness. I manipulate and assemble them together as brush strokes to create an effect similar to a Van Gogh painting in three dimensions.
One of the important tasks for artists of our time is to bring more of the natural world back into people’s lives, especially in urban areas. When we encounter the true wonders of nature, the beauty we behold transcends our intellects and reaches directly to our hearts. I desire a similar response from viewers of my work; to provoke a re-examination of our relationship to the natural world. I also believe that when we can find beauty in one unexpected place, It carries over to other areas of our lives and helps us also find good in things, events and people that we had not considered before. It helps us feel more open and kind toward the whole world.
I believe that best way for artists to help reduce waste is to show how beautiful these materials can be, and what can be done with these mundane objects and materials. When we think of these things as beautiful, we value them.
For more information on Saka Ganz: Reclaimed Creations, please visit their website at:
https://www.davidjwagnerllc.com/exhibitions.html#SG
SAYAKA GANZ: RECLAIMED CREATIONS, Produced by David J. Wagner, L.L.C., David J. Wagner, Ph.D., Curator/Tour Director