GALLERY MoMo Projects (Roppongi) will be holding Motoki Hitomi's solo exhibition "In the Forest of Ido" from July 1st (Saturday) to July 29th (Saturday).

Motoki Hitomi, born in 1985 in Shimane Prefecture, completed his master's degree in sculpture at Tokyo University of the Arts in 2010. He primarily creates anthropomorphic animal sculptures through wood carving. Since receiving the Mitsubishi Estate Art Award in 2008 during his studies, he has been warmly welcomed by a wide range of audiences through exhibitions such as "Outdoor Art Exhibition: Animal Forest" (2010, Utsunomiya Museum of Art, City Cultural Forest), "Animale Exhibition" (2011, Shimane Art Museum), and "Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale: Art Fild" (2012, Niigata).

In contemporary society, the process of growing up from childhood to adulthood has always been a significant concern. Hitomi's early works, including anthropomorphic animal sculptures and sculptures of children, seem to reflect his own psychological state at the time. In recent years, his works have expanded into more narrative-driven pieces. He continues to gaze at the process of growth and transformation from childhood to adulthood, maintaining a longing gaze towards children, including their negative aspects, as he himself becomes an adult. His works reflect his desire and attitude to carve into the material of wood carving while struggling with these thoughts and emotions.

In this exhibition, focusing on the unconscious realm known as the "Ido," which governs instinctual desires and impulsive aspects in psychoanalysis, Hitomi sets the stage as the "Forest of Id" and turns it into a story. He expresses the conflicts of the growth process from childhood to adulthood, as adolescents wander between society and the ego, by his works. He states, "I hope each artwork becomes an icon born from human activities by placing the contact with others in a fairy tale-like manner at the center of the story."

Hitomi's works are born from his own memories, discoveries, and interests that intertwine. Moreover, when he finds inspiration from encounters and dialogues with others, especially those who have walked different paths in life, and discovers shared experiences and senses, they often merge with captivating images. He also mentions that this is one of the significant elements in this exhibition.

By finding points of contact with others within Hitomi's fairy tale-like stories and creating works that resemble symbols born from people's activities, he aims to deliver resonating messages and evoke a strong sense of empathy in viewers through the exploration of human growth and inner introspection.

Artist's comment:

Even as I age and become recognized as an adult by those around me, there is still a vague sense of emptiness, a lack of grounding.

Where does this void come from?

I have yet to feel a sense of truly becoming an adult.

I am still wandering in that "forest" where I got lost during my youth, realizing the insurmountable wall between others and myself.

There is a word that represents the "unconscious impulse," called the Ido, and I have named the deep forest that spreads in my heart as the "Forest of Ido." It serves as the stage for the stories of the weary boys and girls who wander without a place to rely on, between social interactions and their egos.

Through losing something, I discover things I didn't know and repeat this process, hoping to eventually see what lies beyond the forest.

That is the story.

When I shape the form of a child, it seems to evoke memories from deep within my own mind, and within the passage of time as I trace those memories, a multitude of colorful stories come to life.

They are fragments of myself, and the lingering essence of people I once saw, each serving as a marker that helps me recognize their place within the story.