Institute of Intimate Museum seeks to make the viewers question how they see things. Even though they cannot fully see the work, they understand it because they have lived it. In Sugiyama’s words, “The viewers may recall visiting a museum before and through memory this brings them back to how they perceived or how they remembered that museum space.” Sugiyama’s body of work is about seeing and remembering experiences.
Sugiyama looks inward into his mind. The work contains miniature books that represent the artist’s cognitive brain and his memory in the hope of a brighter future.
The figure visually based on a younger version of the artist stands tall on a removable lid. When peering inside, one will see stacks of books in the library's bookshelves reflecting the working mode inside the artist’s brain.
A beautiful museum space spreads out inside a 7.5 cm spherical handblown glass. To view this work, the physical distance between the viewer and the work is completely eliminated. When peering inside the eye ball, the viewer becomes a third person that peeps into a miniature world of a private museum.
This series presents a surprise of a miniature art museum situated inside an everyday packaging of pasta or cereal typically sold in supermarkets. The design of the package to show off the content of the product inside becomes a crucial part of the artwork.
Born in 1962, Nagoya, Japan
Education
1987 B.F.A. Aichi Prefectural University of Fine Arts and Music, Japan
1989 M.F.A. Aichi Prefectural University of Fine Arts and Music, Japan
Solo exhibitions
2022 “IIM-Inside the Head, La Lanta Fine Art, Bangkok, Thailand
2021 “IIM-Institue of Intimate Museums CADAN YURAKUCYO, Tokyo
2020 “Cell Inside of My Head” Primae Noctis Art Gallery, Switzerland
2018 “Cell-Closed Chamber as Myself, Inside and Outside-”, STANDING PINE, Nagoya
2015 “Institute of Intimate Museums”, La lanta Fine Art / Bangkok, Thailand
2014 “Institute of Intimate Museums Mirror Mirror”, Primae Noctis Art Gallery, Switzerland
2014 “Institute of Intimate Museums Ghosts in my mind”, STANDING PINE, Nagoya
2010 “I.I.M. The world’s End”, STANDING PINE, Nagoya
2009 “Institute of Intimate Museums 1999-2008”, STANDING PINE, Nagoya
2007 “Self-Portrait”, Gallery Ray, Nagoya
2006 “Very Inner Place”, Gallery Ray, Nagoya
2005 “Viewer”, Gallery Ray, Nagoya
2003 “I.I.M. Director”A”, I I M Director”B”, Nagoya City Archives, Nagoya
2001 “I.I.M. Director’s Room Gallery OH”, ORIBETEI, Aichi
2000 “I.I.M. Institute of Intimate Museums”, A.C.S, Nagoya
1999 “Institute of Intimate Museums”, A.C.S Nagoya
1997 “Inside Outside”, A.C.S, Nagoya
1996 “Inside Outside”, A.C.S, Nagoya
1995 “Inside Outside Focusing on a New Generation in ‘95”, Gallery Yamaguchi, Tokyo
1995 “Inside Outside Face to Face”, A.C.S, Nagoya
Awards / Grants
2011 The Asahi Shimbun Foundation
2005 The Nomura Cultural Foundation
2002 Vermont Studio Center Freeman Fellowship Alternate USA
2002 AIGIN Education and Culture Foundation
2000 The Pollock-Krasner Foundation USA
2000 The 5th Content for the Best Contemporary Art Work, Jury Prize
1999 PARCO ART PROJECTS URBANART#8 Excellent Prize
1998 Philip Morris Art Award 1997 POLA Art Foundation
1998 Canada’s year of Asia Pacific
1995 Young Artists Overseas Training Program Nagoya City Cultural Foundation
1994 Holbein scholarship
1989 Graduate’s Award and Purchased by Aichi Prefectural University of Fine Arts
Notable Collections
2019 Sega Sammy Holding Collection “Institute of Intimate Museum Outside” (Tokyo, Japan)
2017 Koo House Museum “Institute of Intimate Museum Outside” (Seoul, Korea)
2017 BENETTON Collection “Institute of Intimate Museum Outside” (Italy)
2015 Audemars Piguet Collection ”Institute of Intimate Museum Outside” (Le Brassus, Switzerland)
1998 ART/OMI “Institute of Intimate Museum” (New York, USA)
1997 Baie-Saint-paul Museum “Inside Outside” (Quebec, Canada)
1989 Aichi Prefectural University of Fine Arts and Music “Hitotachi” (Aichi, Japan)
