A solo exhibition by LIO (里央), the Grand Prix winner of the 3rd BUG Art Award, titled "Lucid Dreamers" (ルシッド・ドリーマーズ), opens on Wednesday, February 10, 2027 at BUG in Marunouchi, Tokyo. BUG is operated by Recruit Holdings Co., Ltd. and is directly connected to JR Tokyo Station's Yaesu South Exit.
LIO has long worked across a wide range of media, including video and sound installations, to amplify the voices of people who are socially oppressed. LIO's expression centers on personal identities that intersect in complex ways throughout history, such as queer and mixed-roots identities, and is created in the hope that it may "at times function as a role model for someone, or become a place of rest for someone weary from fighting."
The Grand Prix Work "Purple Back"
Purple Back, the work that won the Grand Prix, is a video in which LIO lip-syncs, as a drag king, to the dialogue of an interview conducted with friends who are siblings. The work contains distinctive touches. When the friends, who have Black roots, talk about their experiences related to skin color, LIO leaves the screen. For keywords connected to the BDS movement, LIO tapes their mouth shut and deliberately refuses to lip-sync.
The jurors gave high marks to the video's composition, which conveys a sense of humor even as it deals with topics such as identity and politics, and to the strength of the work itself, which does not close in on itself but opens widely to society and the world.
What to Expect at the Exhibition
The exhibition is built around new work by LIO, who has experienced gender transition, that uses LIO's own voice as it changes through testosterone administration, along with works on the themes of "beings that tend to be overlooked by the world" and "oppressed bodies." About a year has passed since LIO won the Grand Prix, and this first solo exhibition follows a period of thought and preparation.
About the BUG Art Award
The BUG Art Award is an award for artists with 10 years or less of art-making activity. It provides support such as feedback from the jurors and consultation sessions on exhibiting and installation, and it takes part in the artists' growth throughout the judging process.
Artist Statement
In a world where a rigid gender binary and heteronormativity born of colonial rule are pervasive, finding someone with whom one can overlap oneself and imagine at least a little of the future is sometimes a matter of life and death for queer people. In today's world, where our living as ourselves is exploited in political debates and access to gender-affirming care* and medical services is restricted, the artist extends into the space of BUG the voices of queer people they have met through taking part in social movements. These voices, which are at times drowned out and treated as if they never existed, can only be made out when viewers actively move around the space. The exhibition title "Lucid Dreamers" refers to people who dream while recognizing that it is a dream. For a queer artist, living in this world means that a dysphoria like having such a bad dream certainly exists, while at the same time there are euphoric feelings gained at times through encounters with communities and others, and through a lifelong journey of healing. (LIO)
* Gender-affirming care is a general term for medical, psychological, and social support that aims to support the mental and physical health of people whose gender identity does not match the sex assigned at birth, and to ease their difficulties in living and their discomfort with their bodies. It includes psychological support such as counseling, medical support such as hormone therapy and surgery, and social support such as respecting names and pronouns, changes in clothing and hairstyle, and adjustments to school and workplace environments.
About the Artist
LIO (里央) (they/them)
Born in Nagano Prefecture in 1996 and raised in Tokyo. After studying abroad in Athens, Greece, LIO completed studies in the arts in 2023.
LIO creates work from an interest in the boundaries and perceptions shaped by attributes such as race and gender, approaching them from a queer perspective. Through multimedia works that move back and forth between fiction and nonfiction, LIO shifts the assumptions embedded in social structures and norms. LIO works across multiple fields, including video, installation, theater, and performance. A representative work is Purple Back (2024).
Past Works
"Our" Stories. Installation view at "The 71st Tokyo University of the Arts Graduation and Completion Exhibition" (第71回東京藝術大学卒業・修了作品展), Tokyo University of the Arts (東京藝術大学) Toride Campus, 2023.
the Warmest colour. Installation view at "Touch My Mumblings, Hug My Words, Kiss My Singing," 旧平櫛田中邸アトリエ, 2023.
俺は絶対に塗りたくなかったから虹色に塗ったの。, 2021.
Exhibition Details
- Title: The 3rd BUG Art Award Grand Prix Winner Solo Exhibition, LIO "Lucid Dreamers" (第3回BUG Art Awardグランプリ受賞者個展 里央「ルシッド・ドリーマーズ」)
- Dates: Wednesday, February 10 to Sunday, March 14, 2027
- Hours: 11:00 AM to 7:00 PM
- Closed: Tuesdays (open on Tuesday, February 23)
- Admission: Free
- Organizer: BUG (Recruit Holdings Co., Ltd.)
- Venue: BUG, Gran Tokyo SOUTH TOWER 1F, 1-9-2, Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-6601
- Official website: https://bug.art/
Access
- Directly connected to JR Tokyo Station's Yaesu South Exit
- 5-minute walk from Exit 8 of Tokyo Metro Kyobashi Station
- 7-minute walk from Exit 1 of Tokyo Metro Ginza-itchome Station
Facilities
- BUG is on the first floor of an office building and can be reached from the entrance without steps. BUG is the space that extends behind the cafe.
- There is no nursing room.
- There is one multipurpose restroom on the same floor of the building, equipped with a diaper changing table, a baby chair, and ostomate facilities.
- Several restrooms are located on the first basement level (the Yaesu underground shopping area, 八重洲地下街), accessible by elevator or escalator.
- BUG has no dedicated parking lot, so please use public transportation.
BUG staff do their best to provide support and information within their means so that they can welcome visitors with a variety of circumstances.
