ELEMENTS OF FUTURE

The five elemental components said to constitute the world—Earth, Water, Fire, Wind, and Void—have changed significantly since the era before science.
Although we walk on the ground every day, it is now covered with asphalt and pavement, making it difficult to sense the changing seasons through the earth beneath our feet.
While we walk upon the Earth every day, it is now covered in asphalt and pavement, making it impossible to feel the turning of the seasons from the ground beneath our feet.
Water is taken from taps or water servers.
Fire is lit with matches or lighters, but even these are now being replaced by electric heat.
If one wishes to enjoy the mysterious and profound beauty of a flame, one must go into the mountains and build a bonfire.
On the upper floors of high-rise buildings, the Wind is shut out, while the blades of wind turbines rotating in the distance can only be seen hazily on the horizon.
In the city, the area of the Sky is becoming increasingly narrow, crowded by the height of architecture.
Upon the foundations of nature, the rise and fall of civilizations, history, and culture have been accumulated.
For better or worse, the world does not stop its progress.
How does the world appear to those of us caught in the midst of its vortex?
Its chaotic appearance may be both beautiful and hideous at the same time.
However, as we steadily stack further layers upon it, it seems these elements will take on entirely new forms.
Starting with a new generation of people, then the urban environments that surround them, followed by science, politics, culture, and art.
Perhaps these will gradually become borderless and abstract.
And, I hope that there lies a future within them that we can choose for ourselves.

On December 12, 2020, an unveiling ceremony for the large-scale ceramic relief mural “ELEMENTS OF FUTURE” was held during the completion ceremony of the international exchange facility “Hisao & Hiroko Taki Plaza” (hereinafter “Taki Plaza”) at the Ookayama Campus of the Tokyo Institute of Technology (President Kazuya Masu).
The original painting and supervision for this mural were provided by Katsuhiro Otomo, world-renowned for his manga and films such as AKIRA. As a public art artwork, it conveys a message of “connecting” to a bold and brilliant future, perfectly suited for Taki Plaza—a facility conceived as a student-centered hub for international exchange and connection.