Traveling Africa with a POTATO

Takuro Kotaka [Japan]

2010.05.12 - 2010.05.16

For this exhibition, Takuro Kotaka, who had already been making work in Africa unaccompanied, will present a project where after hearing the rumor "there are no potatoes in Egypt", he took a potato bought in a market in South Africa on a trip to the northernmost region of Egypt. Together with his potato Kotaka, who had been nicknamed 'spud' at school, visited 14 countries overland over a 7-month period, recording their epic adventure where they traversed the African continent.

"The crossing of the African continent is an ordeal even for people, so for a tiny potato it must be like going to Mars. Among other happenings along the journey, we were almost eaten by tribes of rarely viited places, I almost had my things robbed, and we rode in a car that overturned in the desert. With the help of the potato, I could connect with the African people, and through the experience I have come to think that perhaps only I am making links with the world in this way."

The work in this exhibition takes the form of video installations and documents.

Date	2010.05.12 - 2010.05.16
Place	ギャラリー
Website	http://kotaka766.com