In the beginning of summer of 2023 four young local artists came together and painted on the edifice of the now unused building. What motivated this decision? We asked the people behind the project.

Q: This spot is right next to Plaza Tenjin, isn’t it?

Urabe
Our company owns this building, but in March of 2022 the Chinese restaurant that used to stand here closed its doors, and since then there had been nothing but a grey enclosure. Since we have time until our next plans for the spot we began looking for ways to use it in the interim. As fortune would have it, Murakami-san was then contacted by somebody in the artistic community. 

Murakami
At the time we were considering ways that we could help connect art, city, and people in their daily lives together. I saw that large grey space as an enormous white canvas we could work on, a place of possibilities. 

Urabe
Our company’s management philosophy is “to make people happy”, and for us this motto doesn’t stop with our customers but extends to everybody in the neighborhood. It’s for this reason that we felt drawn to this project and decided to allow them to use the wall for their artwork. 
 

Q: How were the artists chosen?

Murakami
The basic requirement was that the involvement of art would help promote the local businesses, i.e., the artists must fit the corporate philosophy of the "Plaza" group. Another important element was that the artists must have had prior experience painting on surfaces outdoors.

Yamada
We thought it would be great if we could be a place where young artists working in Fukuoka could be active. Influenced by the “Plaza” concept of “making fun spaces” we chose Shunta Inoue, Tomorou Yamanaka, yakkii, and YUUM to be our four artists. 

Urabe
While work on the walls took roughly one month, during that time many pedestrians would come up to the artists as they were working. We were happy to see this natural sort of rapport between creator and spectator. You had a wide variety of people stopping by as well. From elderly women to youths passing through the area, people who you normally wouldn’t expect to take an interest in art would stop for a moment and talk to the artists. There were even people who brought refreshments to the artists to help them in the midst of the early summer heat. The artists too found ways to involve passersby, such as by having them remove the masking tape from the art pieces when they were finished. 

Q: What has the reception of the pieces been half a year on since their unveiling? 

Murakami
When looking at the art people will often stop and tell us things like “This is a nice painting!” Because of the location in a busy thoroughfare, stopping and looking at the piece results in these kinds of serendipitous happenings. There’s this feeling of new unplanned possibilities. 

Urabe
With the completion of the wall art here we’ve received requests like “Can I have my art on the wall next time?” Many young artists are seeking unique places for self-expression. If the opportunity arises we’d like to help realize these dreams in the future. 

PLAZA Wall Art Project 
[Location] Plaza Shinten Building {Fukuoka, Chuo ward, Tenjin 2-6-41}