Adobe Museum of Digital Media Announces Exhibition Launch – Mariko Mori: Journey to Seven Light Bay

Exhibition opens on Dec. 6, 2011, 12:01 a.m. EST at www.adobemuseum.com/TidaDome; Curated by Tom Eccles, Executive Director, Bard College Center for Curatorial Studies

SAN JOSE, Calif. — The Adobe Museum of Digital Media (AMDM) is pleased to announce the launch of Journey to Seven Light Bay, a new, much anticipated exhibition by Mariko Mori, curated by Tom Eccles, executive director of the Bard College Center for Curatorial Studies. The previously announced exhibition (please see earlier press release) opens Dec. 6, 2011, at 12:01 a.m. EST.

Journey to Seven Light Bay represents the most recent installment in the work of Mariko Mori, whose interest centers on pushing the boundaries of art and technology. This digital project transports AMDM visitors to the tranquil Miyako Island in Okinawa, Japan, where Mori has installed the first part of her monumental earth work, Primal Rhythm, consisting of a sun pillar and a moonstone that changes color in accordance with the bay’s tidal movements. The first phase of Primal Rhythm, produced by Mariko Mori’s Faou Foundation, will open in Japan on the winter solstice, December 22, upon completion of Sun Pillar.

Mori says, “The project in Japan expands in its digital form through the AMDM, making it accessible to a broad audience worldwide.”

Mori’s artistic philosophy encourages greater awareness of the natural world. According to Mori, “This work is designed to unite the celestial and the terrestrial. It will be a lasting testimony that pays respect to the natural beauty of our surroundings on earth.”

About Mariko Mori
Mariko Mori (born 1967, Japan) is an acclaimed artist whose work has been acquired by museums and private collectors worldwide. Educated in Tokyo, London and New York, Mori gained recognition for her interactive installation, WAVE UFO, which debuted at Kunsthaus Bregenz in Austria in 2003. The installation was subsequently shown in New York and Genoa, and included in the 2005 Venice Biennale. It was also featured in Oneness, a survey of Mori’s work that opened at the Groniger Museum, The Netherlands, then traveled to the Aros Aarhus Kunstmuseum, and the Pinchuk Art Centre, Ukraine. The exhibition also traveled to the Centro Cultural do Banco do Brasil of Brasilia, Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo this year.

Mori’s monumental installations have been exhibited, and her works have been in collections at renowned institutions throughout the world. Mori has received various awards, including the prestigious Menzioni d’Onore at the 47th Venice Biennale in 1997 (awarded for “Nirvana”), and the Japanese Art in 2001 from Japan Cultural Arts Foundation. The artist is currently based in New York. A full biography is available upon request.

About Tom Eccles
Tom Eccles is executive director of the Center for Curatorial Studies at Bard College, and former director of the Public Art Fund in New York City from 1996-2005 where he curated more than 100 exhibitions and projects. Since joining CCS Bard in 2005, he has overseen the construction of the Hessel Museum of Art, which opened in November 2006; co-curated the inaugural exhibition of the Marieluise Hessel Collection, Wrestle; and organized exhibitions with artists Martin Creed (2007), Keith Edmier (2008) and Rachel Harrison (2009). In 2005, he organized the U.S. version of Uncertain States of America at CCS Bard. He also commissioned the permanent installation of Olafur Eliasson’s Parliament of Reality on the grounds of Bard (2009). In addition, Eccles has curated exhibitions at the Park Avenue Armory, Marian Goodman Gallery, and was a “correspondent” for the 2009 Venice Biennale (curated by Daniel Birnbaum).

Eccles studied philosophy, aesthetics and semiotics at the University of Bologna from 1985-1987. He graduated from the University of Glasgow in 1989 with a master of arts degree in philosophy and Italian. A full biography is available upon request.

About Adobe Museum of Digital Media (AMDM)
The Adobe Museum of Digital Media (www.adobemuseum.com) is a one-of-a-kind online museum and interactive venue designed to showcase and preserve groundbreaking digital media works and provide a forum for expert commentary on how digital media influences culture and society. The AMDM is open 24/7, 365 days a year, and is free of charge. Visitors are invited to sign up for free membership. The AMDM launched in October 2010 with inaugural exhibition, The Valley, a specially commissioned work from renowned American artist Tony Oursler. Exhibitions are curated by leaders in art, technology and media, changing regularly throughout the year. An exhibition archive is accessible at www.adobemuseum.com.

About Adobe Systems Incorporated
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