Project in Progress

 

Collaboration was one of the mainstays of this project. A large number of people, beginning with but not limited to the students, faculty, and staff of our university, were directly involved in various capacities in bringing this exhibition to life. Among them, the contribution of Mark Dion's assistant, William Bryan Purcell, deserves particular mention.He arrived on site slightly ahead of the artist himself and,working from the written instructions with which he had been provided.threw himself unreservedly into preparing the SIte and other work.
Academic refuse.dug up throughout the university in the roughly two months from the begmning of the excavations, the night befombeingmoved to Koishikawa Annex.

With their high ceilings, large windows, and large entrance halls, the Occidental-style wooden buildings of the early Meiji period have a great deal of open space when compared to contemporary buildings. During the day light streams into the rooms from outside, and at night the light from inside shines beautifully outside.



The collaboration was marked by tensions that are not usually present in constructing an exhibit. Different opinions were exchanged, and sometimes clashed, right until the final position of an exhibit was decided. Important work on the exhibit was also assigned to students in the seminar, and the site is marked throughout by the traces of their presence.

 

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Copyright 2003 Mark Dion & The University of Tokyo