tadashi kawamata weaves 100,000 chopsticks into an immersive, parasitic 'nest'

inside the parisian gallery kamel mennour, japanese artist tadashi kawamata has woven an immense ‘nest’ that spans three exhibition rooms and an exterior courtyard. marking his fourth solo show at the gallery, the exhibition is centered around ‘nest’, a sculptural installation made from more than one hundred thousand interlaced wooden chopsticks. three smaller nests, built from wooden slats or chopsticks, echo the larger piece, each lodged in the inside and outside of the gallery.

nest, 2017 | sticks, glue | variable dimensions
all images © tadashi kawamata
all photography, archives kamel mennour / courtesy the artist and kamel mennour paris/london

kawamata disorients the architecture of kamel mennour by inhabiting a parasitic, precarious, and fragile body within its exhibition and outdoor areas. ‘my works are like bumps on the forehead,’ the artist says. ‘they’re an organism’s reaction, feeding on and disappearing from it as quickly as they appeared.’ the site-specific ‘nest’ draws from the building itself, as well as comments and ideas from the community of builders kawamata engages with throughout the development process. ‘the creative process always begins after I’ve seen the exhibition space’, the artist continues. ‘nest’ is on view from now through january 27, 2018.

nest, 2017 | sticks, glue | variable dimensions

nest, 2017 | sticks, glue | variable dimensions

K-6, 2017 | wood, sticks, glue | 185 x 45 x 40 cm

nest, 2017 | sticks, glue | variable dimensions

nest, 2017 | sticks, glue | variable dimensions

nest, 2017 | sticks, glue | variable dimensions

nest, 2017 | sticks, glue | variable dimensions

nest, 2017 | sticks, glue | variable dimensions

nest, 2017 | sticks, glue | variable dimensions

nest, 2017 | sticks, glue | variable dimensions

nest, 2017 | sticks, glue | variable dimensions

K-8, 2017 | wood, sticks, glue | 45 x 45 x 30 cm

K-1, 2017 | wood, sticks, glue | 100 x 85 x 90 cm

K-7, 2017 | wood, sticks, glue | 50 x 45 x 30 cm