Tabaimo: Sono Ato (And Then) at Gallery Koyanagi

2024.11.10

I have liked Tabaimo ever since I saw her work in a room at the Kyoto Museum of Culture when I was in college. It was a chance encounter; I had only stopped by while visiting another exhibition in Kyoto. Where else have I seen her work? It was in the Ryutaro Takahashi Collection at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo the other day, wasn't it? I feel like I saw it at Warehouse Terrada, too. I remember watching her animations for a long time. I guess I really do like Tabaimo's work.

Now, as for the cocktail, it had a monotone, stylish design. Even though the very existence of a cocktail is stylish, having a sleek base with something sticking out of it is so classic and cool. That's why I decided to drink it at night. During the day, I had the 'Festival' drink. It had a small red round ice cube on top, which looked a bit like the sun and felt festive. I thought that was the one to drink during the day.
I felt that 'White is Scary,' the Tabaimo cocktail, was perfect for when the area outside the white-floored venue turned pitch black at night, making everything monotone and quiet.

I watched excitedly as they made it. A certain famous yogurt (Bulgaria) in a blue package was inside... It's delicious, isn't it? I like that refreshing taste that makes you feel like you're eating yogurt. I was convinced it would be a delicious cocktail.

I was told, 'The black liquid is in the dropper, so please drip it in as you drink. The surface will do something interesting.' So, I played around by dripping a lot of it in. It did something interesting. Why does it do that? It moves like iron sand reacting to a magnet placed under soil, which is soothing. When you stir it a little, it seems to react again—perhaps some of it hadn't fully reacted yet—wriggling and then settling down. Since I saw the Bulgaria yogurt, I thought it might be a battle of the good bacteria.

There is a potato on the tip of the pick. A small potato. Delicious.

I thought the overlapping black lines were similar to Tabaimo's work. It's mysterious, after all. A bottomless, chilling sense of dread.

Well then, Gallery Koyanagi. I didn't know there was a gallery here. It's relatively close to the Police Museum. I was nervous going up to the 9th floor of the building.

I think—no, I'm quite convinced—that this is a work that will strike a chord with people who like Edward Gorey. I like him too, after all. Also, it's similar to the atmosphere of 'Shadows House' (the manga).

I really like it. I knew I did. It was a great experience to be able to literally taste the work through the cocktail.