JUDGES, COMMENTS

• Sayaka Ogawa
  Cultural anthropologist
  Proffessor at Graduate School of Core Ethics and Frontier Sciences

  Sherry Shao’s Windows distinguishes itself from other entries exploring the world with/after COVID-19 pandemic by pursuing the possibility of physical/multimodal communications via a simple window.
  Here, a window, a simple glass object that separates two spaces is transformed to a symbol of hope under the COVID-19 quarantine. When you consider the fact that romance and aspiration have been assigned to windows in cultural history, as have been seen in romantic novels, comics and movies, you may say that Windows is a multimodal pandemic update of such.
  Yet, the thematic scope of this work goes well beyond the pandemic. Solidarity has been a global issue within the modern society for decades, which due mainly to urbanization and virtualization. In an urban society, it is not strange to not know the face of neighbors. In a virtual space, although the abundant presence of other avatars, people are apt to be disconnected. There are a great number of social recluses (Hikikomori) in the contemporary world who are aware of the necessity to reconstruct actual social bond, but do not know how to take a step toward the society. Windows may give a solution to such modern issues by its simplicity, creativity and amusement by enabling people to "be together while still being alone". It can provide relief to individuals and strengthen social bonds in the physical world.
  For above mentioned reason, the committee is proud to give the student award to Sherry Shao’s Windows which is a simple yet strong work of art responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, yet not limited to it.