When I think of the work of Kentaro Hiroki, the Hal Foster essay,
“The Artist as Ethnographer”, comes to mind. The association
is not precise and only loose, as Foster is critical about the
use of a particular mode of ethnography in contemporary art.
But there are at least two reasons that I make the reference.
First, Hiroki’s approaches often privilege certain techniques
that in his specific applications are atypical. Second, his art is
created out of a research process that makes a serious
commitment to a specific time and place. Behind Hiroki’s
artistic practice is a clear framework about life and work,
where time and life are inseparable, and determined by action
or karma.