Meet with Kathleen Gontcharov for breakfast at the IH. She the curator of the New School in New York and is traveling with a ACC grant also. My head was full of sake, which a very nice feeling. We shared information and then I went to Shinguku a very commercial, shiny, crowded area in Tokyo where, I guess you can buy anything. It is a complete chaos a little bit sleazy. Shinjuku has, as the guide tells you "a questionable reputation". Right on...
Unfortunatly I had a meeting at the ICC (Inter Communication Center) to meet with Hisanori Gogota. He is a curator there. And thanks to Steve Dietz introduction he offered to work on my computer in order to be able to have e-mail in my IH room. This place ICC, is technology oriented and do exhibitions and collection on this topic.
Before our meeting I took a walk in a little street full of very little store and had some sushi in the street. Very nice, far from the madness of Shinjuku. Language, language, language.
I meet Hisanori, gave him my computer and he sent me to gallery. The show was about artist from Holland dealing with technologies. Not really my cup of tea. A little techno-formalist, but some of them were good. A beautiful Dumb Type installation is in the collection. They also built a time line of technology since the early XXth century including objects from Marcel Duchamp to Star Wars and Madonna. Everything being intalled in a vitrine which is included into the floor. One can steps on history. The place is definitively worth visiting.
I was really confused that Hisanori had to spend the afternoon working on my computer. I always think that computer are smart. It is not true. Computers do not understand our needs. Computers do not have brain. Computers do not have soul. Anyway discussing with hisanori I found out that he knew Masami Akita, the leader of Merzbow. Merzbow being the electronic noise band that I want to meet. Good, the connection is made and they will performed at LaMaMa. LaMaMa being a club in Shibuya. I am really interested for Let's Entertain. Maybe it could be an inter-departemental collaboration: New Media - Performing Art - Visual Art.