Seongsan Art Hall

Kei Imazu, SATENE’s Gate, 2024, iron, oil paint, acrylic paint, filament print, canvas, calcium, polyurethane paint, pigment, dimensions variable, Commissioned by the 7th Changwon Sculpture Biennale 2024

Based in Bandung, Indonesia, Kei Imazu uses data to distort and reconstruct images, exploring the forms behind them. In this work, Imazu recreates a fictionalized landscape from the Hainuwele agrarian mythology of the Indonesian island of Seram. “Hainuwele,” a girl whose name means “coconut branch,” claimed a certain captivating talent: the ability to defecate treasures like pearls and porcelain. A village feast was held to celebrate this wealth, but on the ninth day Hainuwele was killed by the villagers — marking the first-ever death and murder. Upon learning of the girl’s death, Satene, goddess of the underworld, created a giant gate of torture; all who participated in the murder would pass through this gate and be punished. The girl’s father buried his daughter’s fragmented body in various parts of the village, and it is said that bulbous plants and shrubs grew from them. Forging connections between life, death, and reincarnation, Imazu’s piece asks the viewer to reflect on violence and loss, transformation and circulation.