Dialogue - Mikusa -

The ideal environment is something you create yourself

The origin of Mikusa's activities lies in the original Japanese landscapes that Hiroki saw as a boy.

A thatched-roof house quietly standing in a bamboo forest, an old man plowing a field with a cow, and other images of people praying and living strong lives surrounded by majestic, abundant nature.

As the country's economy grew, the beauty of its surroundings was being lost, and Hiroki, who longed for a traditional way of life, traveled to Australia in his early twenties.

You will meet a family living a self-sufficient life in the remote rolling hills.

They built a house out of the surrounding wood, soil, and scrap materials, raised livestock, grew crops, cooked with firewood, and read books by candlelight. This was the life they had dreamed of since childhood, and they spent half a year living with the family.

"My experience in Australia taught me the way of life. I didn't just feel sad, but realized that I have to create my own ideal environment. It wasn't about what I wanted to be, but I wanted to live a life similar to theirs."With that single-minded goal in mind, after returning to Japan, he moved into a U.S. military house in Fussa, Tokyo, that was scheduled to be demolished, as a period of preparation for life in his ideal land.

Through a series of coincidences, they finally found their ideal land, "Kurohime," after searching for over a decade. The open land was out of reach, but with a change of thinking, they realized they could live there if they cleared the jungle themselves, where grass, trees, and vines grow in every direction and it was impossible to enter without bending over. "Whether we can or can't, it doesn't matter, we want to live here," they said, with that single thought in mind, and the development began.

Even if it takes time, we will keep our feet on the ground and walk forward step by step

"There were difficult times, but I think what we have embraced with our whole hearts and bodies over the past ten years has probably become a lifelong treasure for both of us."

When I look back on the years that have passed, it's not hard to imagine that there must have been hardships and struggles that cannot be measured in words alone.

To start the development, we first cut down the densely growing thin trees, undergrowth, and tangled vines one by one with saws, sickles, hatchets, and lawnmowers. Every day, we worked as hard as we could from dawn until darkness, losing our grip strength, getting blood blisters, and getting bitten by insects all over our bodies, but we struggled day after day in the jungle. We slept in a compact car, and our fatigue kept building up.

Hiroki : It took five or six years to clear the land. It would have been quicker if we had only built a place to build a house, but we had a dream of raising horses and sheep in the future, and we also wanted to have a field, so we needed a certain amount of space. Because it is an area with heavy snowfall, the land is buried in snow for nearly half the year, making it impossible to work. It was also rocky land with many large rocks. It took a long time to uproot the trees and move the rocks.

In parallel with the development, he also spends time collecting scrap materials for future homes. When he finds out that buildings are being demolished, such as a nearby US military house, a friend's family home, a storehouse, an old ice factory, and a shipyard, he goes to collect the discarded materials, which fill more than ten trucks.

Yoko : Looking back, it has been a decade of personal growth. It was a physically and mentally tough time, but the experiences I gained were not possible through thinking alone, and now I treasure those times. Through developing the land myself, my perspective on the landscape created by so many of my predecessors has changed dramatically, I have come to appreciate the weight of time it takes for the forest to form, and I think my attachment to the land I will spend my whole life on has grown even deeper.

Sharing deep parts of yourself builds genuine trust

When you look back, ten years is just a collection of days.

They say that what is important to them as they spend their days is having "deep conversations."

Yoko : It may seem obvious, but what's important to us is to spend time talking things through. I think the deeper you are within yourself, the more difficult it is to understand each other and put it into words. Sometimes we talk calmly, but sometimes our feelings clash as we share them. Even so, Hiroki says, "Mikusa exists because we are a family. Not facing each and every event and thought and not taking it to heart is not the life we ​​are aiming for," and no matter what the situation, we continue to share our feelings with each other.

Music that weaves together the four seasons of "Kurohime"

This was the second time I held an exhibition at Utsushiki called "Kusahara no Utage". Regardless of where they live, guests who I have met and become friends with over the past ten years came to the event and held a banquet for just a few days.

Furthermore, to mark the milestone of their 10th anniversary, the two have produced an album titled "Mikusa" by Mikusa x haruka nakamura feat. LUCA, with all songs written specifically for Mikusa's 10th anniversary.

Haruka Nakamura and LUCA, who have been friends for a long time, visited Kurohime throughout the four seasons of the year, touring the forests, grasslands, and lakes together, and wove together the music while thinking of Mikusa.

During the exhibition, special guest "baobab" will perform live for three days to celebrate the release of their 10th anniversary album "Mikusa."

Each song was filled with stories of Mikusa's present, future, and the distant past, creating an evening filled with wonderful sound that touched on the images in the hearts of all who listened.

Passing on to the next generation

In an age where we are overflowing with things and information, what we value varies from person to person.

The couple, who spent a year with their child last year, say that "raising a child is nothing but happiness and joy." Even when their work piles up, they say they have never felt stressed because of raising a child.

"It's the same when they're inside my body, but even after they're born, I still find it mysterious how they grow so fast on breast milk alone, even though I understand the theory behind it," says Yoko. In the process of raising a child, you'll discover a new side to them that will completely change the way you see the world.

Yoko : I began to feel a deep love for not only my own children, but all the children I met, and I was moved by how much the way I saw the world changed. Now I can see the beautiful parts of the world, rather than the negative parts. Children's growth cannot be stopped or accelerated, and it continues to change from moment to moment. If I continue to spend time the same way as before, I feel like I might miss these things. I want to spend time with them, feeling how precious and precious every moment is.

Hiroki : Looking back at the things that have touched my soul in my life so far, it was the sight of people living traditionally that I have seen in Japan and around the world. Their clear eyes, deep spirituality, and the beauty of their lifestyle itself. I will never come close to matching those things, but I strongly wish to show even a fragment of them to the next generation. That is why I intend to continue my activities wholeheartedly, so that I can share my feelings with as many people as possible. The crucial difference between the past ten years and the next ten is that, although the road up until now has not been easy, I believe the next ten years are a time to enjoy life to the fullest.

[Exhibition Information]

Mikasa Ten: "Polarno Square? I wonder, I've heard of it before. What is it called, Polano Square?"
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"It's an old tale, but it's been happening again recently."
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"Yes, that's right, I heard it many times when I was little.
It must be a festival spot in the middle of the fields.
I guess it's about counting the numbers of those clover flowers."
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"Oh, that's an old tale. But it seems to be happening these days."
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Kenji Miyazawa "Polano Square"
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"Feast in the Grasslands"

A small wheat field that sparkles like a jewel in the middle of the forest.
The way it flutters in the wind it looks like a giant piece of velvet.
A secret meadow, a dream or a moment of reality. A distant memory from my childhood.

I believe that what I am currently devoting my life to is a constant, unreachable reach to the image of that place that moved me so much as a child.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of Miso. In this exhibition, we have invited some of the irreplaceable friends we have made over the past 10 years to participate.
I hope to have a fun and happy time like at a festival.
The title that came to mind was "Feast on the Grassland." I am looking forward to seeing what kind of sculptures will be gathered at the feast.
On the edge of the small grassland, the couple plans to recreate a room in the house they are planning to build together, and arrange the furniture and living items they have made there.

Thinking back on the past ten years and the next ten to come, I want to follow the path to the "Polano Square" that I seek, "by the light of the white clover."
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Hiroki Kobayashi