Dialogue - Ryosuke Yagi -

Life in Tokyo

From a young age, Yagi-san loved drawing and making things.

It was his days spent at the Setsu Mode Seminar art school in Tokyo that nurtured his way of thinking that is not bound by conventional ideas.

Looking back, he recalls that he experienced many encounters with a diverse group of people that he is still connected to today.

In his early twenties, he worked on stage and interior design projects, and after work he would spend nights making furniture in his studio, understanding and mastering the techniques himself.

Yagi continued to study and pursue the ideal space that he could renovate himself, and in 2007 he started the gallery/studio "LIFT."

At the same time, he began collecting antiques such as desks and chairs from flea markets and other places and renovating them.

LIFT got on track right from the start. It was rented out as a photo studio for advertisements and magazine shoots, artists' exhibitions were held, and people who attended live shows and plays bought furniture.

People who want to open shops ask us to do interior design, and artists have the opportunity to design spaces.

Looking back, while traveling around Japan for various jobs, he realized he saw the potential of the regions that wasn't possible in Tokyo.

This was also the time when people began to realize that Tokyo could be a place to go for work, rather than just a place to live.

Moved to Yamaga Town

In his early 30s, Yagi decided to move from Tokyo to Yamakacho, Kitsuki City, Oita Prefecture.

I came across an old house that was about 150 years old, built just right for my means at the time.

He said that some of the people around him in Tokyo were of the opinion that "He's in his 30s now and is just starting to hit the prime of his career, so why not become famous, make some money, and then move here in about 10 years' time?"

Still, Yagi decided, "I want to do it when I can move my body the best." For about a year, he worked in Tokyo every two weeks, traveling back and forth between Tokyo and Oita, renovating the old house with his own hands.

As this was a new challenge for them, it is not difficult to imagine how they must have arranged for materials and carried out the hard work, even though they knew few people.

We will make the most of the technology we have and spend about two years completing your dream home.

Starting with the people we meet through manufacturing, we will build face-to-face relationships and deepen our life in Yamaka.

An experience that can only be had in store

The "LIFT Yagi Ryosuke Exhibition" began on September 19th as part of Utsushiki's anniversary project.

The exhibition is titled "Space Circus."

What kind of space do you imagine when you hear this word?

The space changes every day during the exhibition, as Yagi-san creates furniture and lighting while in the gallery. The exhibition also features antique furniture and tools that he has collected over the years.

These days, you can instantly get what you want online without having to go to a physical store. But I still want to go to an exhibition or a store because, even if there is a specific piece I'm looking for, I enjoy coming across something that catches my interest more than that.

Another reason is that the spatial composition and display allow visitors to get a glimpse of the creator's thoughts and aesthetic sense.

Stubbornly flexible

On weekends, the cafe hosted dinner parties for Tenogi, who has moved to Yamaka, and Takakura Yuriko.

On the final day of the exhibition, there will be a baobab concert, directed by Yagi.

It's time to set up the venue for a concert. In the limited time available, Yagi-san thinks things through more deeply than most people, without putting anything into words, and quietly moves into action right up until the start of the performance.

"I'm conscious of not separating the performers and the audience too much. I try to maintain a natural sense of distance between the musicians and the audience. Even just taking a chair at a concert, whether it's a deep-backed chair or a slightly harder chair will affect the way you face the concert. I feel a sense of depth in a space precisely because it is made up of many small elements."

Of course, skill and a wealth of knowledge are necessary, but in the end, what you can rely on is your own eyes and aesthetic sense.

The circular theater surrounding the stage gives the feeling of having wandered into a circus arena, creating a truly "spatial circus" experience.

A concert where you can feel the change of seasons in the autumn night breeze, hear the chirps of birds and insects from outside, and feel the entire venue, from children to adults, come together as one.

There is something about that moment, including the presence of the people sharing the space with you and the overwhelming emotions, that can only be conveyed by experiencing it with your own eyes.

Finally, Yagi says that there is still a lot he wants to learn, such as woodworking techniques.

"My hands and technique can't keep up with what I can do in my head, so I have to just keep making and honing my skills. But as I gain technique, there are times when my creativity starts to fade. Maybe I don't just like neat and skillful things, but also ambiguous things."

Rather than drawing boundaries, they will likely continue to create things while cherishing their uncompromising values ​​and aesthetic sense, and while facing the unanswerable questions of space.