tomorrow's 'field of stars' installation ponders environmental changes in japanese village

a wooden dome with an oculus invites contemplation

Field of Stars is a site-specific installation that connects art, crafts, and architecture to create a setting that displays the natural beauty of Japan. Set to be unveiled this fall in Taiza, a remote, seaside village in a historically significant area of Kyoto that saw prosperity in ancient times, it has been realized by artist Teresita Fernandez and carpenter Shuji Nakagawa, led by project manager Shunya Hashizume of TOMORROW with students Kohei Wakamatsu and Cypress Fernández-Downs.

It takes shape as a dark wooden dome sited amid a natural landscape, seeking to reflect on environmental changes on a global scale, with a more sustainable approach to the natural resources currently being consumed. Amid the installation, visitors are engulfed in the darkness, only illuminated by stream of light filtered in through the oculus and small demarcations along the facade that glisten like stars in the night sky.

an oculus tops the wooden domed structure | all images courtesy of TOMORROW

tomorrow collaborates with multidisciplinary creative team

Teresita Fernandez’s concept-based work is rooted in challenging conventional definitions of landscapes by deconstructing traditional genres of landscape painting and land art to reveal more urgent narratives. The designer places particular importance on her critical choices of materials that have complex histories often tied to colonialism, land, and power. Field of Stars in particular utilizes a material palette that is deeply tied into the property’s history. ‘The stage of the project is a ship dock after the ancient times, and the land behind the Japanese sea side’s largest ancient shrine and the great shrine of the Great Sha. Through his works, Fernandez continued his attempts to rethink the definition of landscapes, dismantling existing genres in art history, such as landscape painting and land art,’ writes the team at non-profit organization TOMORROW.

the installation invites reflection on environmental changes on a global scale

Field of Stars

the design team on site

project info:

name: Field of Stars
designer: TOMORROW, Teresita Fernandez, Shuji Nakagawa, Shunya Hashizume, Kohei Wakamatsu, Cypress Fernández-Downs

location: Kyoto, Japan

designboom has received this project from our DIY submissions feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: ravail khan | designboom