Fremantle Arts Centre Artist in Residence Manabu Kanai (JPN) enjoys a challenge. The adventurous artist has exhibited across the globe, including Melbourne, Japan and Slovakia and has a PhD from Tokyo University of the Arts (2015).

Manabu’s decision to abandon traditional art forms, from painting, sculpture and installation, stem from an interest in creating site-specific work where the site itself becomes an integral part of the piece.

“Often a white cube is considered the best space to show artwork in the art world – a neutral space. For me, the noise of the white cube’s doors and windows are something I try to emphasise. I base my work on the space itself where the space becomes both a material and part of the form the work takes,” Manabu says.

Manabu Kanai (JPN), Parataxis, Everyday Life (detail), 2016, stone, MDF, perspex, acrylic paint, dimensions variable

The bilingual artist’s practice centres around his desire to escape the bounds of language and his quest to create a new visual form of expression.

In his Fremantle Arts Centre exhibition Parataxis, Everyday Life, Manabu uses stones found on North Fremantle’s beaches, repositioning these in a gallery space and reflecting on the qualities the stones assume in their newfound home.

“The way we perceive the world is locked in a prison of our language. I’m interested in the genesis of language and how our thoughts and knowledge of the world is dictated by the words we know and use,” Manabu says.

“I try to surpass this, designing a visual language where there is no meaning or message behind my work but something transcendental.”

Parataxis, Everyday Life opens on Sunday 6 November from 3–5pm. The exhibition will run from 10am–5pm daily from Monday 7 – Wednesday 16 November. Manabu will be available to give tours of the show and discuss his work by appointment. Email [email protected] to arrange a time.

Manabu Kanai (JPN), Parataxis, Everyday Life (detail), 2016, stone, MDF, perspex, acrylic paint, dimensions variable