Christe’s NY Inside Job show at the Chrstie’s NY Gallery at 20 Rockfeller Plaza, NY, NY 10020.

More info TBA

July 13 — 14, 2024
Ridgewood, Queens NY
2pm — 7pm

*ITO will be performance 2pm, 3pm on the corner of Madiaon st. and Woodward Av. at July 13 (Sat) .

24 Empty Tree Beds - 25 Participating Artists

Ridgewood’s sidewalks have over 800 empty tree beds - or roughly one for every 90 residents.

The Fallow Frames Biennial is an upcoming public art festival that will be held on July 13th and 14th, where local artists are invited to use 24 abandoned tree beds to stage site-specific installations and performances.

Visitors are invited to wander the neighborhood as active participants in a larger narrative of renewal and artistic expression - and to spark conversations about urban ecology and these small neglected patches of the city’s landscape.

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Monira Foundation presents: Open Book with Chihiro ITO. This Open Book features the zines created by Chihiro ITO during his Jonas Mekas Research and Production Residency and Fellowship at Monira Foundation. During his six-month supported Residency and Fellowship, Chihiro worked to support Sebastian Mekas in enhancing the archives of Jonas Mekas, a visionary who dedicated his life to democratizing film, media, and art, and to create new works inspired by that archive. This Open Book presentation is an annex project to his current exhibition at Monira Foundation: ‘𝘙𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘵𝘰 𝘙𝘦𝘦𝘭 -𝘵𝘰 𝘑𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘴 𝘔𝘦𝘬𝘢𝘴-.’



“This zine was made during my Jonas Mekas Fellow Residency at Monira Foundation (2023-2024). Jonas passed away in 2019. He was my mentor and friend.



In 2023, during the Jonas Mekas Fellow Residency, I had access to his archive materials, supported by his son and archivist Sebastian Mekas. The Reel to Reel series is an official collaborative work with Jonas Mekas Studio and Monira Foundation. This zine’s concept is the re-birth of archival materials into the now by my re-creation. Jonas’s spirit continues even after his passing, much like how a film moves from one reel to another. The zine is named after one of Mekas’ archival files.



Part of the profits of this zine will be used to support Jonas Mekas Studio to help archive works.”

Chihiro Ito is a Japanese painter and multimedia artist. He was born in Tokyo, where he studied painting at Musashino Art University. He also took a continuing education writing course at the School of Visual Arts. He was an invited artist at European Capital of Culture events in Portugal, Cyprus, and Serbia. In 2018, he received a grant from the Japanese government to come to the US, where he began documenting the remaining living artists associated with Fluxus. He encountered Jonas Mekas during his NYC visit. After these experiences, he began to make experimental films and poetry. In his art, he looks for the opportunity in poetry to connect ordinary objects and everyday experiences to people across geopolitical boundaries.

These zines are available for purchase at the Monira Foundation website: https://monirafoundation.org/shop/

The Jonas Mekas Research and Production Fellowship is supported by the National Endowment for the Arts.

Reel to Reel -to Jonas Mekas-

at Mana Contemporary 5th fl. 888 Newark Ave. Jersey City NJ 07306

On view through Aug 30, 2024
Visiting hours: by appointment, please email us to schedule your visit: info@monirafoundation.org



Embracing the enduring legacy of Jonas Mekas, a visionary who dedicated his life to democratizing film, media, and art, the Monira Foundation and the Jonas Mekas Studio welcomed Chihiro Ito for a six-month-supported Residency and Fellowship in which he worked to support Sebastian Mekas in enhancing the archives and to create new works inspired by that archive. With unwavering commitment, Ito delves into the studio’s rich repository, collaborating with Sebastian Mekas to preserve archival treasures and craft new artistic marvels for ‘Reel to Reel – Jonas Mekas.’ Each week, he immerses himself in the studio’s treasures, infusing them with new life and meaning. ‘



The concept of this project is to bring the archive materials to life in the present through my reinterpretation. Jonas’s spirit continues even after his passing, much like how a film moves from one reel to another,’ – Chihiro.



About the artist:

Chihiro ITO is a Japanese painter and multi-media artist. He was born in Tokyo where studied painting at Musashino Art University, also He took a continuing education writing course at the School of Visual Arts. He was an invited artist at European Capital of Culture events in Portugal, Cyprus, and Serbia. In 2018, he received a grant from the Japanese government to come to the US, where he began documenting the remaining living artists associated with Fluxus. He encountered the Artist Jonas Mekas during his NYC visit. After these experiences, he began to make experimental films and poetry. He is the recipient of a Holbein award (2017), an NYFA grant (2021), a Robert Rauschenberg Foundation grant (2021), an award from Monira Foundation(2022), Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts(2022), BronxArtSpace(2022), The Poetry Project(2022). He also got an award to participate in Creative Rebuild New York’s first basic income project for a New York Artist. His activities are MoMA PS1, Governors Island, Pioneer Works, Queens Museum, Mizuma & Kip’s Gallery, etc. In his art, he looks for the opportunity in poetry to connect ordinary objects and everyday experiences to people across geopolitical boundaries. He immigrated to NYC.