Saturday, 13 November 2004 | Levent OZLER

The AQUOS Project

Experimental Installation art at SoHo

Cutting-Edge Gallery Merging Sharp’s Aquos™
Liquid Crystal Display Televisions With Contemporary Art Opens In New York City

Located in the heart of SoHo, The AQUOS™ Project showcases color, detail and sound of Sharp’s industry-leading LC-TVs, through the work of visionary artists

The AQUOS™ Project is a gallery environment that seamlessly fuses the work of innovative artists, in concert with Sharp’s industry-leading AQUOS™ Liquid Crystal Display televisions. The AQUOS™ Project is one element of Sharp Corporation’s global brand advertising campaign. Television commercials, magazine advertising and a complementary online, interactive campaign highlight the superior color, detail and sound of Sharp’s industry-leading line of AQUOS™ Liquid Crystal Display televisions.

The AQUOS™ Project will remain open through December 24, 2004 and will host exhibits by two innovative and experimental artists, whose work can be displayed, in part, on AQUOS™ LC-TVs. The artists will also incorporate elements from Sharp’s television commercials and complementary campaign web site, www.moretosee.com into their exhibitions.

“The AQUOS™ Project seamlessly fuses the work of these artists through the design-enhanced color, incredible detail and natural sound afforded by the world’s premier Liquid Crystal Display television,” said Bob Scaglione, Senior Vice President of the Consumer Electronics Marketing Group of Sharp Electronics.

“Sharp established the liquid crystal display television category and offers the industry’s widest assortment of models, in screen sizes ranging from 13 to 45 inches,” he said. “Liquid crystal display is at the core of AQUOS™ and many other Sharp products and represents the company’s commitment to innovation and creating one-of-a-kind products with unique user benefits,” said Scaglione.

The opening exhibit highlights the work of Kenzo Minami and is his first solo show.

The show, entitled Codex 408, directly references the famed Voynich medieval manuscripts, currently housed at Yale University. His work is composed of layers of flat colors, logos, esoteric symbols and codes. The exhibit reflects Minami’s reaction to the richness of the manuscript, interpreted through multimedia, including a large-scale mural, a series of silk screens and a video installation. His work’s layered approach takes full advantage of AQUOS™’ key product benefits – truer color, greater detail and enhanced sound – the premise of Sharp’s advertising campaign that there’s always “more to see.”

“The AQUOS™ Project is an opportunity for me to mix different art mediums under one theme. Though I’ve done animation in past work, I’ve never been able to combine it with my mural and prints,” states Kenzo Minami. “What excited me about this project is the connection between my direction and approach and Sharp’s AQUOS™ campaign. Both introduce snapshots of information while telling a story, and this connection offers a perfect platform for my first solo show.”

The Minami exhibit will run from October 27 to November 14, followed by an exhibit from TRONIC, a New York City directing, design and animation studio. TRONIC’s installation, called Bloom, will exhibit from November 26 to December 24, 2004. Bloom is a computer generated CNC milled sculpture. (CNC milling is the process through which circuit boards are produced). The sculpture is a representation of the colliding worlds of nature’s organic structures and technology’s synthetic mimicry of them.

“Sharp represents the threshold of innovations not only by way of technology, but through its ease of use and ergonomics to offer a more hassle free experience,” says Vivian Rosenthal of TRONIC. “TRONIC has been involved with multidisciplinary design for years and The AQUOS Project is a strong way by which to continue this exploration.”

During The AQUOS™ Project’s duration, the space will also host a series of events, from music launches to VIP parties. For further information on these events visit www.moretosee.com.

The AQUOS Project was conceived by Wieden +Kennedy as part of Sharp’s “More to See” global marketing campaign. The space itself has been created, organized and managed by LIME public relations + promotion. Kenzo Minami’s CODEX 408 and TRONIC’s Bloom is curated by Formavision.