枯白 (KOKU), autumn 2024
OF A space is an art and architecture studio, alongside an exhibition place where we curate artworks in dialogue
with our ongoing spatial, material, and performative projects.
The studio currently operates between the UK and Iceland.
A day at OF A space is reminiscent of lucid dreaming, where beauty ceases to exist for itself, where the
familiar leads away from the familiar and the mundane becomes unmoored from its utility.
Creating worlds for the stage, for dance in particular, one understands the everyday as a stage. The kind of
transcendence we experience watching a theatre or a dance piece becomes too isolated in performance, within a
present absorbed by the mundane.
OF A space is an initiative to bring this ephemeral feeling off stage, into our everyday, infusing reality with
this feeling OF A …
To arrange a visit please book an appointment via e-mail and we will be in touch. Looking forward to meeting you..
Ralu works at the intersection of art, architecture and performance, with projects presented at the V&A, Sir John Soane’s Museum, the Lisbon Architecture Triennale and the National Theatre of Iceland.
Laura is an architect with experience in restoration and boutique development, contributing to cultural and residential projects in London, Paris, Reykjavík, Shanghai and Mauritius.
Oli is a designer and technologist whose work has been shown at the Barbican, the V&A and the Venice Biennale, and who has delivered immersive projects for Heatherwick Studio and Zaha Hadid Architects.
Byron is an architect who combines design with restoration and craft, with a background in preserving photographic collections and restoring antique furniture as cultural artefacts.
The Japanese term "枯白" (koku) translates to "withered white" in English. This term can be interpreted as
referring to something that has aged or faded to a pale, whitish colour, typically with connotations of elegance
or dignified aging. The concept might suggest beauty or a refined aesthetic that comes with age, commonly
appreciated in the context of traditional Japanese culture.
Based in a nature-rich area of Western Japan, KOKU is an artisanal furniture studio, drawing inspiration from the
textures and forms found in nature with a profound respect. The objects crafted from wood and metal, reinterpreted
anew, celebrate their expression as the material changes with time.
With past exhibitions in Osaka, Tokyo, Taiwan and China, KOKU's founders Takaaki & Naomi Inui are presenting their
first European exhibition at OF A SPACE,
Reykjavik.
EXHIBITED BETWEEN:
AUTUMN 2O24-SPRING 2025
WITH THE SUPPORT OF:
Turning time
The artworks unfold unlinear dimensions of time, where the past, present and future intertwine, suspending a conclusion.
Each piece seems to extend beyond physical dimensions, allowing multiple temporal layers to influence the objects we perceive.
In the making, Yuki Igarashi's pieces accelerate, fragmented into a distant future. While we can see traces of a
past and a future, the fullness of a present piece remains sealed in a suggestion.
He refers to the cherry tree as "a tree that continues to bloom even when there is a hole inside." This quiet resilience of the
cherry tree is what is prominent in his artworks, for each piece holds with elegance the shape of a vessel.
Opening
Friday, December 5th, 2025
Reykjavik, Iceland
PLEASE ARRANGE A VISIT
WITH THE SUPPORT OF:
