WAGASHIconography studies Wagashi (Japanese traditional sweets) from an iconographic perspective.
Interpreting wagashi as abstract motifs, we metaphorically derive the stories behind their origins and the culture tied to their backgrounds.
「“WAGASHIconographic Karuta” is made as a set of Karuta, a traditional card game in Japan. In this Karuta, the shape of wagashi and the story behind it are translated into motifs (images), and the answers are found by looking backwards from the relationship between the picture cards and the reading cards.
For this exhibition, we introduce “The Public WAGASHIconographic Karuta”. Usually, Karuta is played on private occasions within a closed community.
This work is more similar to public art, where everyone who passes by can participate in the game. We explore the potential of Karuta as open media.