Copperplate engraver Yoko Yamamoto is holding her solo exhibition, "Yoko Yamamoto: Art in Hospital," at the Isetan Shinjuku Main Building's 7th floor event space. Since 2005, Yamamoto has been working on "Art in Hospital" as one of her new life's work. This project utilizes the power of art to bring peace of mind to patients, their families, and medical professionals in hospitals. Yamamoto's interest in art in hospitals began after her father's death, and she has studied in Sweden, a country with a pioneering welfare system. Regarding art in hospitals, which is still relatively unfamiliar in Japan, Yamamoto says, "Patients who visit hospitals feel a positive desire to get better, but also tension and anxiety. Deep down, they may have a somewhat frightening image of hospitals. Sweden, which has actually incorporated art into its hospitals, believes that hospitals should be the most beautiful and comfortable places. As an artist, I hope to change attitudes toward hospitals in Japan through art."
What is required of art displayed in hospitals is not the quality of the work itself, but rather that it must be appropriate for the environment and the land. When Yamamoto receives an offer to create a work, she immediately visits the site and holds meetings with patients and hospital staff to discuss what to depict there. This is based on her belief that "artwork for hospitals should not depict a worldview that you personally like. It is important to have conversations with the people who spend time there and discuss together what kind of image will create an effect."
The original artwork displayed in the space just inside the entrance of the exhibition was created for a piece painted in the west entrance of Takamatsu Red Cross Hospital. The work is based on an etching she created in 2000, based on the French chanson "Les chemins de L'amour." However, the original artwork contains elements not found in the original etching. The islands, ocean, and olive trees were added after conversations with local stakeholders led to requests for depictions of Seto Inland Sea islands such as Naoshima and Shodoshima, as well as the ocean and olive trees. Additionally, because the piece will be displayed at the hospital entrance, the artist has carefully considered the eye level of passersby, adding a frog at children's eye level.
During the week it took her to paint the aforementioned piece in Takamatsu, not only patients and their families but also the medical staff working at the hospital seemed to enjoy the process of creating the piece, which changed daily. From this experience, she believes, "For medical staff, the hospital is where they spend most of their daily lives. If the place is bleak, they will not feel at ease. Just like patients, medical staff need a space to relax." She also expressed her opinion on the type of art needed in a hospital: "I think it should blend in unobtrusively with the environment, like ambient music, and quietly speak to the viewer."
While Yamamoto has previously held solo exhibitions at the store, she feels strongly about the significance of this exhibition at a department store.
"Department stores are places where people come in pursuit of their dreams. I would be delighted if people would stop by and take a look at the artwork while they are shopping, and if this would serve as an opportunity for them to think about the role of art in hospitals and what is required in the medical field."
