Inspired by the myth of the Umibōzu, this dual-channel video installation navigates the ocean’s quiet contradictions. Its surface is a space of solitude and reflection, yet beneath it, an unseen force stirs. The Umibōzu emerges as a fleeting presence, a specter of uncertainty, embodying how anxieties rise without warning to unsettle our calm. The ocean becomes both refuge and reckoning, mirroring the mind’s shifting currents where fear and tranquility blur until one suddenly overtakes the other.
Originally exhibited in the heart of Times Square, a place defined by constant motion, distraction, and spectacle, the work offered a countercurrent to the urban noise. In this charged site, the ocean’s eerie stillness broke through the screens, much like the Umibōzu disrupts placid seas. This contrast emphasized the tension between surface and depth, public display and private emotion, drawing viewers into an unavoidable encounter with the hidden specters within themselves.
