Urauny defines the internet as an area where media is visualised—rather than a physical device that conveys media—and positions itself as an expressionist of the of the post-internet age. Throughout their work, urauny avoids making clear demonstrations. They do not declare their gender, age, or nationality, and separate each exhibition with their content and title as they continue their activities as urauny. Area of activities include the contemporary art world such as Parplume keeps watch over our art (2017, AWAJI Cafe & Gallery), and Chaos*Lounge Art Festival 2016 “La Porte de l'enfer / city play”(2016, Fukushima, Iwaki City). They also reach into a diverse set of activities such as a collaboration with the fashion brand, chloma, and even game developments.
In this exhibition, participating artists include ak., Hayato Isozaki, and Marina Komiya, thus the title urauny has turned into to uuuurrrraaaauuuunnnnyyyy, in order to exemplify the four artists. The fundamental concept behind urauny is to “positively convert complexes.” Here the word “complex” not only implies the notion of “inferiority complex” but also the emotions caused by social discrimination. urauny suggests that societal discrimination is detrimental not only to the affected minority, but also to the silent majorities. urauny explores the dichotomy of a public opinion that wishes for global peace and at the same time gets bored with such righteous stances. Uranus challenges to convert such constraining situations into a positive condition.
This exhibition attempts to comment on social structures using emotions and feelings as starting point. The gallery space becomes a representation of a virtual world that resembles the internet. The virtual world urauny imagines is a shop that displays on its shelves a special type of VAPE (e-cigarette). The taste of this VAPE is not tobacco but human body fluid instead. The VAPE itself is covered with a material that resembles the human skin.
What kind of ceremony would it be, when cannibalism takes place in a virtual world where physical senses becomes subtle? The act of eating a human instantly evokes no physiological disgust, but also the desire of wanting to taking in that person into yourself at the same time. urauny aims to connect with the world not only with its visual senses, but also the tactile senses, acoustic senses, smelling senses, and also explores the idea of understanding others through their taste inside your mouth.
Real world products and randomly lined up on their shelves - the hyperlinks of the virtual world though, are a completely different story. When certain items are aligned on top of or underneath each other, coincidental meanings are generated. Objects therefore can create a sense of power structure; Humans who are authorized to align those items, and humans who are authorized to NO accept and observe such alignments. In this virtual world urauny makes the rules. urauny becomes the power structure itself, which then transforms itself into a ceremony of symbolic cannibalism. This is as though stating that they will rebuild the world through the process of metamorphose, instead of rules. urauny will positively convert the world’s complex through cannibalism. We highly look forward to youse visit and experiencing the new world created by urauny.