Very good condition.
Signed and dated on the bottom lower left of the safety pin case.
Signed and dated on the bottom lower left of the acrylic case.

Recognized for her significant solo exhibition, 'Origination Method,' at the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Contemporary Art held from December 2023 to March 2024, Toyoshima Yasuko (1967-) stands as one of Japan's leading contemporary artists. Driven by conceptual art narrative, her notable creations include Answer Sheet, Pencil, Open Bank Account, and more recently, Cover-up Maneuvering and Panel. Despite the diversity in her artistic style, Toyoshima's practice consistently embodies a confrontational stance towards institutional frameworks, values, and promises, questioning the nature of others and the self from the notion of “self.”
In her works, Toyoshima frequently incorporates tools, systems, and objects from her surroundings.

The safety pin used in this work has been an indispensable tool in our daily lives since its invention by American inventor Walter Hunt in 1849. Within this artwork, Toyoshima uses a bench to repeatedly bend, fold, or extend a large number of pins. This repetitive action serves as a manifestation of Toyoshima's dialogue with various events and existing frameworks, representing an unconscious resistance. Through this act, Toyoshima aims to awaken the "rhyme" between the embedded pins within herself and her own being. The traces of this confrontation become evident as each transformed form rhythmically imprints itself. Through the resulting works, Toyoshima presents the possibility of new perspectives on the frameworks we routinely depend on.

Created in 1996 and revisited with a case in 1998, this work titled Safety Pin represents a valuable piece from the early stages of Toyoshima's career, spanning over 30 years. It offers a glimpse into Toyoshima's youthful curiosity and consistent artistic exploration throughout her long and distinguished career.

M-gallery, Tochigi, Japan

"TOYOSHIMA YASUKO: works 1990-2013", Abe Publishing, 2017, p. 95, no. 145