Mariko HORI
Something defined by the world around or within it
installation / epoxy resin, pigments, and transparent films / 2025
In the collection of KWR Water Research Institute, Nieuwegein, the Netherlands
"[Uncountable] a liquid without colour, smell, or taste, falling as rain, filling lakes, rivers, and seas, used for drinking, washing, etc."
— Oxford English Dictionary
Inspired by books as vessels of knowledge, this work takes the shape of the most essential fluid on our planet, free from what we expect a book to be.
Each page describes the liquid without naming it—as data, statements, or sometimes poetry—written by researchers who study something around or within this element every day.
Their words float on the surface, easy to read at first glance. But if you linger, they gather beneath, forming a deeper density.
Reading shifts from reflection to immersion: from observing the surface to exploring what lies beneath. What seems simple above reveals layers of stories, countless perspectives, and emotions, reflecting the nature of scientific practice. Clear, yet never fully explained, it is shaped by what continually escapes definition.
Created during the artist in residence program
at KWR Water Research Institute, Nieuwegein, the Netherlands
All content © Mariko Hori 2025