Hirokazu Kosaka and LA Free Music Society at the Getty Jan. 20

On Friday, January 20, 2012, the Getty Museum will present performance artist Hirokazu Kosaka and the Los Angeles Free Music Society in an evening event that will kick off the Pacific Standard Time Performance and Public Art Festival.



Kosaka’s sculptural and performative installation Kalpa will transform the Getty Center’s Tram Arrival Plaza with an enormous spotlight, Butoh dancers and hundreds of spools of colorful thread placed on a wall designed by architect Michael Rotondi.

In Sanskrit, kalpa means eon—a long period of time. In this performance, Kosaka builds a symbolic parallel between kalpa and the inevitable passage of time that slowly transforms lives, histories and memories.

“It is believed in the Buddhist faith that once every hundred years, an angel comes down from heaven and swipes the surface of a stone with her silk sleeves until the rock disappears,” said Kosaka “This idea comes into play in my performance, as it demonstrates the deliberate, unseen passage of time, and the tangible objects that we use to measure it.”



Kosaka is known for his large-scale pieces, which often use publicly accessible space as a platform for dance, performance, and visual art. Kosaka’s work has been performed at venues that include the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; the Japanese American Theater, Los Angeles; the Seattle Art Museum; and the Indianapolis Art Museum.



Performers include Butoh master Oguri, who will lead a small company of dancers, musician and composer Yuval Ron, who will create the aural environment with a combination of live and recorded music and sounds, and harmonica player Tetsuya Nakamura.



Following the performance of Kalpa, the Los Angeles Free Music Society will present LAFMS Shoe on the Getty Museum’s outdoor courtyard stage. LAFMS Shoe is an ensemble comprised of many of the core members of the Los Angeles Free Music Society. The musicians will play a series of duets that seamlessly morph from musician to musician, exposing a constantly evolving palette of musical voices.



Kalpa and LAFMS Shoe will be presented on Friday, January 20, 2012, beginning at 7:00 p.m., outdoors at the Getty Center. The events are free, but reservations are required and are available beginning Tuesday, December 20, 2011 at 9:00 a.m. For reservations or more information, visit http://www.getty.edu or call (310) 440-7300.



The Pacific Standard Time Performance and Public Art Festival will take place from January 19 through 29, 2012, featuring more than 30 extraordinary performances—including contemporary re-enactments of iconic works by artists such as Judy Chicago, Suzanne Lacy, Robert Wilhite and James Turrell. Organized by the Getty Research Institute and LA>