SIDE CORE: Exploring Art, Disaster & Japan’s ‘Living Road’

Kanazawa, Japan – The 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art in Kanazawa is currently hosting “SIDE CORE: Living road, Living space,” an exhibition that defies straightforward categorization. More than a retrospective, it’s a dynamic intervention, a reimagining of the museum’s role, and a poignant response to the challenges facing rural Japan, particularly in the wake of the 2024 Noto Peninsula earthquake.

The exhibition, conceived by the Japanese art collective SIDE CORE – Sakie Takasu, Tohru Matsushita, and Taishi Nishihiro – began as a literal tracing of a route from Tokyo to the Ishikawa prefecture, a region deeply impacted by the earthquake. This journey, born from a desire to connect with and support the affected communities, evolved into a multi-faceted exploration of roads, both physical and metaphorical, and the spaces they connect.

SIDE CORE, founded in 2012, approaches art through the lens of street culture, viewing public spaces as sites for spontaneous production, and inquiry. This ethos is immediately apparent in the exhibition’s structure. “NEW ROAD — Opening a ‘path’ through the Museum” directly integrates visitors into the museum’s collection, prompting a new engagement with existing works. Leandro Erlich’s The Swimming Pool (2004), a perennial favorite, is now presented in a new light, observed not only from above but also alongside Stephen ESPO Powers’ mural, My Outside Family (2025), a vibrant depiction of neighborhood faces commissioned by SIDE CORE. Perhaps most strikingly, a fully functional skatepark, complete with a pool-like ramp designed with professional skater Morita Takahiro, occupies another gallery space, transforming the museum into a participatory environment.

The exhibition doesn’t shy away from acknowledging the museum’s own internal processes. “UNDER CONSTRUCTION — Tracing the Trajectory of SIDE CORE” presents a behind-the-scenes look at the collective’s work, documenting their explorations and interventions. rode work (Ishinomaki) (2017) showcases the temporary construction and subsequent dismantling of a skatepark within an earthquake-damaged factory in Ishinomaki, highlighting the ephemeral nature of rebuilding and the power of community-driven initiatives. The remnants of this project – warning lights, pipes, and chains – are re-presented in rode work (construction lights) (2017/2025), hanging like a chandelier, a visual metaphor for a city – and an artwork – perpetually in flux. The ambient sounds of traffic are cleverly incorporated through breath of night (2024), which translates museum foot traffic into a visual representation of a traffic jam.

SIDE CORE further blurs the lines between art and life with “LIVING SPACE — A Place for Living.” Kotaro Hosono’s I’M HOME (2025), a small, temporary artist-run space embedded within the museum, challenges the highly definition of a museum exhibition. Alongside this, Mini Theater “9” (2025) and end of the day (2025) offer glimpses into SIDE CORE’s studio practice, creating a dialogue between the artists’ working environment and the public exhibition space.

The final section, “LIVING ROAD — The Road That Lives,” expands the concept of the road beyond its physical form. Two video works, new land (2024) and living road (2025), are particularly compelling. new land (2024) presents a surreal vision of the altered Noto landscape, lifted by more than four meters in places, imagining it as a new habitat. Sakie Takasu is seen waving a fish sausage at birds from a terrain of volcanic pumice and oyster shells. living road (2025) features Ayana Sakaguchi, a local actor, driving between Tokyo and the Noto Peninsula, her journey unfolding across five screens, mirroring the collective’s own travels before and after the earthquake.

The exhibition subtly explores the cultural significance of roads, referencing iconic routes like America’s Route 66 and their embodiment of national identity and personal discovery. A poignant moment in living road (2025) depicts Sakaguchi driving through a tunnel, struggling with exhaustion. This scene alludes to a specific section of the Noto-Satoyama Kaidō Expressway, nicknamed the Melody Line, which once played a local television theme song through grooves cut into the tarmac. However, ongoing roadworks have silenced the melody, a symbol of disruption and change.

Further emphasizing the interplay between the natural and the constructed, Mud Enough (2025) utilizes clay and charred wood from the Noto Peninsula to create a fragile architectural model displayed in a humid environment, highlighting the pressures of time and geological forces. The exhibition also addresses the often-unseen systems that govern cultural spaces, as exemplified by The Fish Exchanged for Art (2018), a black bass swimming in a tank, requiring a stamped license for the museum to keep it – a commentary on bureaucratic processes and the delicate balance between human and non-human worlds.

As SIDE CORE member Tohru Matsushita noted in a recent conversation, the collective is fascinated by what lies beneath the surface, both literally and figuratively. “We’re intrigued by the notion of the underground because that’s something People can only imagine,” he said. “Living road, Living space” ultimately serves as a call for connection and understanding, a reminder of the fragility of existence, and a testament to the resilience of the Noto Peninsula and its people. The exhibition doesn’t offer easy answers, but rather invites viewers to embark on their own road trip in search of meaning, acknowledging that the journey, like the road itself, is ongoing.