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Biography

Yotaro Niwa (born 1973 on Awaji Island, Japan) is a Berlin-based artist whose practice has developed through sculpture, installation, drawing and collaborative forms. He completed his Master’s degree in Sculpture and Fine Art at Musashino Art University in Tokyo in 1998, where he subsequently worked as a research associate in the Sculpture Department until 2004. He continued his studies at the Braunschweig University of Art under Professor Raimund Kummer and later joined the Japanese Government’s Overseas Study Program for Artists, which brought him to Berlin between 2009 and 2011. Niwa’s work has been presented internationally in solo and group exhibitions across Europe, Asia and North America. Recent projects include Soft Assembly at Art Space Oblong, Copenhagen (2025); the Larnaca Biennale (2025); Seven Seeds at Zou-no-hana Terrace, Yokohama (2024); and exhibitions at Stay Hungry and Studio Thomas & Renée Rapedius in Berlin. His earlier solo presentations include Equilibrium at UGM Maribor Art Gallery, In the Face of an Empty Mirror at Gallery Coexist in Tokyo, Discursive Digressions at 2P Contemporary Art Gallery in Hong Kong, and a project at the Irish Museum of Modern Art in Dublin. His practice has also been shaped by numerous international residencies, including Fogo Island Arts in Newfoundland, Taipei Artist Village, Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris, the Irish Museum of Modern Art, Gyeonggi Creation Center in South Korea, and Pada International Residency in Barreiro, Portugal. Niwa has received support from the Agency for Cultural Affairs of the Japanese Government, the Asahi Shimbun Foundation, the Nomura Foundation and Fogo Island Arts. Alongside his individual work, Niwa has developed collaborative projects with artists including Rebecca Salvadori under the name Zona Dynamic, producing installations and public-space interventions in Berlin, Marrakech, Taipei and beyond.

Archive records · BUNA vol. 4 / 2026

Equilibrium, 2026, mixed media, dimension variable

Artists

This installation is a concept for an in-situ installation at the former Russian Consulate. The space is designed like a long corridor; one entire wall is made of glass and adjoins another room, while the other entire wall is also made of glass and faces the courtyard. Both spaces are visible from both the inside and the outside. The iron grilles, recurring relief patterns, and wallpaper motifs that characterize the exterior and interior of this building serve as the motifs for this installation. This spatial project aims to emphasize, overlay, strip away, or create entirely new meanings for these motifs by fostering interactions between objects collected on-site and commonplace patterns brought in from different countries. These intricately interwoven relationships directly appeal to the perceptions of visitors walking through the space, subverting conventional interpretations. Furthermore, by associating the installation with the design aesthetics of concrete – specifically, Brutalist concrete architecture – which powerfully envelops its exterior, this work attempts a unique fusion and contrast. By exploring the “symbolism,” “authority,” and “aesthetics” inherent in patterns, this work aims to highlight the connections and complexities of meaning – as well as the absence of meaning and absurdity – through spatial experience. During this period of creation of the site spesipic installation, I will gradually connect, suspend, and combine the collected objects, physically sensing the balance and imbalance that emerge as the three-dimensional work takes shape. This on-site creative process differs fundamentally from production that proceeds linearly toward a predetermined, harmonious conclusion. Rather, it is a process of seeking equilibrium by embracing and integrating the „noise“ that arises during creation – such as errors, setbacks, and failures. When the meaning of symbols is stripped away and their symbolism is eroded by overlapping layers, how can we reinterpret the relationships between things in the world through our own bodies? Through this work, by reconstructing fragments that embody diverse perspectives, symbols, and differing worldviews within this unique architectural space, I aim to challenge our preconceived notions, question established values and aesthetics, and lead the way toward new realizations and insights.