Rinko Kawauchi: CUI CUI

Rinko Kawauchi's "Cui Cui" is a photo book that quietly weaves together family moments captured over a 13-year period. New Year's gatherings, her brother's marriage, her grandfather's death, the birth of a new life - ordinary events pile up to form irreplaceable memories. Along with the landscapes of her hometown, which are imbued with the scent of people and the land, the family continues to live on in her memory, repeating meetings and partings.

The title "Cui Cui" means the chirp of birds in French. A subtle hint of life that constantly echoes in our daily lives. As if capturing these moments, Kawauchi Rinko has been examining life and death, their cycles and boundaries. This work is a record of her family, including the death of her grandfather, and at the same time, it is a book that gently awakens the "family album" that everyone possesses.

This series has been shown as a slide show in art museums both in Japan and abroad, and in 2005 it was exhibited at the Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain (Paris) as "AILA + Cui Cui + the eyes, the ears," and in 2008 the exhibition "Cui Cui" was held at the Vangi Sculpture Garden Museum (Shizuoka), which was Kawauchi Rinko's first solo exhibition at a Japanese art museum.

After "Cui Cui," the artist moved on to "as it is," which began with her own experience of giving birth and raising children. This work, which examines the cycle of family life, is positioned as an important starting point.

[Title] CUI CUI 
[Publisher] Foil
[Publication date] April 17, 2005 (2nd printing)
[Number of pages] Unpaginated
[Size] Approx. 167*243*19mm, 809g
[Format] Softcover
[Language] Japanese
[Title reading] Kyui kyui
[Authors/Editors] Rinko Kawauchi/Author, Makoto Yamamoto/Art Direction, Keisuke Kawauchi (Makoto Yamamoto Design Office)/Design
[Printing] Toppan Printing/Printing and Binding
[ISBN] 4902943026
[Condition] Used [7] Above average (slight scratches on obi)
[Accessories] Obi
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[Related Exhibitions] 2005 "AILA + Cui Cui + the eyes, the ears," Cartier Foundation for Contemporary Art (Paris), 2008 "Cui Cui," Vangi Sculpture Garden Museum (Shizuoka)

Rinko Kawauchi

Born in Shiga Prefecture in 1972. Photographer.
After graduating from Seian Women's Junior College, she worked at a photography studio before beginning her career as an artist.

He has received high praise both at home and abroad for his works, which depict in soft, clear colors the life and death that lurk in everyday life, the cycle of time, and the atmosphere of the world.

In 1997, he won the Grand Prix at the 9th Hitotsubo Exhibition.
In 2002, he won the 27th Kimura Ihei Photography Award for his photo books "Utatane" and "Hanabi."
In 2009, he won the ICP Infinity Award for Newcomers (International Center of Photography, New York).
In 2013, he won the New Artist Award at the Arts Encouragement Prize for his solo exhibition "Illuminance, Heaven and Earth, Seeing Shadows," and also won the 29th Higashikawa Prize for Domestic Artists.
In 2023, he received the Sony World Photography Award for Outstanding Contribution to Photography.

He has held numerous solo exhibitions both in Japan and abroad, including at the Cartier Foundation for Contemporary Art (Paris), Vangi Sculpture Garden Museum, Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery, and Shiga Prefectural Museum of Art.

Her major photo books include "Utatane," "Hanabi," "Hanako," "AILA," "Cui Cui," "Illuminance," "Ametsuchi," "Halo," and "Yamanami."

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Rinko Kawauchi