Tomas Saraceno was born in 1973 in Argentine. After studying architecture at the University of Buenos Aires, the artist moved to Europe and now lives and works in Frankfurt, Germany. Saraceno gained an international acclaim at Sao Paulo Biennale (2006) and Venice Biennale (2009), while his large-scale indoor and outdoor installation projects in various cultural facilities worldwide, especially in the US and the UK, have also attracted great attention. Here in Japan, the young artist has made a striking impression by his installation at Towada Art Center, Aomori prefecture, which opened in 2008.
Saraceno addresses complex problems of sustainability and our coexistence on planet earth. His works present an extremely clear “vision”, inspired by various images such as spider’s web, bubbles and clouds. He follows the tradition of “the visionary architect”, Buckminster Fuller, along with Archigram and Yona Friedman, who have warned against the rapid economic growth and have imagined cities of future in the air. Saraceno advances idea of the floating cities even more ecologically sustainable than his predecessors’: his exhibition “Cloud Cities” consists of habitable cells bound together. This fluid city is a vision of coexistence on the global scale, without borders, “flowing like clouds” above earthly problems such as national borders, races, overpopulation and environmental destruction, in order to obtain a new form of living. The bubble-like structure of Cloud Cities floating here and there will generate a new biosphere - an airborne city - in Le Forum at 8th floor of Maison Hermès, which is already located up in the air. Saraceno’s works offer the vision of a future in its transparence and airiness, yet they also urge the public to discuss problems of today’s world: they are where present meets future.