Click to Communicate (Please view on a PC for the full experience.)
Sushi is sushi, but it also transcends sushi.
Susynthesizer
An interactive soundscape
of consumption and self.
Life. Consumption. Regeneration.
"Life. Consumption. Regeneration." What we unconsciously repeat every day becomes a quiet revolution. Susynthesizer is an interactive XR art project that blends sushi and ikebana to explore the dissonance between perception and emotion.
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Susynthesizer Project page is now live
2025.07.13 -
ICE PEDESTRIAN - Susynthesizer - Instagram account launched
2025.4.29 -
ICE PEDESTRIAN project has resumed activities
2024.11.1
Susynthesizer: Concept Interview
Susynthesizer: Demo Preview
Concept
Sushi, infused with life, redefines the world.
Sushi is a globally understood symbol—an emblem of beauty, culture, and identity.
At the same time, it is fleeting, consumed, and disappears in an instant.
The idea of inedible sushi—Sushi Ikebana—is an attempt to shift and recompose its symbolic meaning.
What are we really seeing, and why do we recognize it as “sushi”? This question is thrown at your body—not your intellect.
Introduction
Based on a draft video originally submitted to Open Call for Artists 2024 (Ars Electronica),
Susynthesizer marks the revival of ICE PEDESTRIAN’s artistic activities.
Its three-layered structure conceptual, visual, and interactive—subtly shakes the participant’s perception and emotion.
Flow to Susynthesizer
From SUSHI IKEBANA (collage) and SHIBAMATA VR (memory and place), to installations in
psychiatric clinics ──this project weaves together previous works into a contemporary allegory of “living sushi.”
What is Susynthesizer?
Through nonverbal interaction with sushi-formed digital entities,
the work confronts fundamental questions of consumption and life.
Why Sushi?
Sushi symbolizes “ephemeral beauty” through its act of being consumed. Now regarded as a luxurious cuisine and a symbol of Japanese culture,
sushi was once sold from food stalls in Edo-era Japan—quick and accessible.
By reconstructing sushi as ikebana with life,
this project presents it as a metaphor for re-examining the everyday.
Message
Sushi is a cultural icon—and one destined for consumption.
But what happens when it is reborn as ikebana, refusing to be consumed, bearing life?
Can the world withstand such a redefinition?
This is not just a concept— it is a layered experience, meticulously designed.
Susynthesizer Details
Borrowing the form of sushi, the work embodies “life” like ikebana.
Normally, sushi disappears without a trace.
Here, it engages the viewer in nonverbal interaction, responding emotionally through sound and motion.
-The installation consists of three projection walls with spatial audio, offering a fully immersive experience.
-Three types of Sushi Ikebana react to visitors’ movement and voices, each speaking a different “language of life.”
-The ambient/electronic soundtrack is composed by the artist themself.
Can you feel this question that exists nowhere else in the world?
It’s not a fantasy—it’s real, and ready to emerge if someone reaches out.
Document Download
About
ICE PEDESTRIAN
ICE PEDESTRIAN — A Tokyo-based Transformative Art Collective
We craft devices that connect with the world through sound, installation, and digital expression.
From the unnoticed gaps of daily life,
we gather residual sensations and memories, transforming them into quiet, immersive experiences.
Our members shift with each project— formed through resonance among artists, engineers, researchers,
and therapists alike.
Artwork Format
Genres:
Installation / Interactive Art / Media Art
Techniques:
Projection, Sensor Technology, AI Voice, Sound Installation, Smartphone UI
Conceptual Intention:
Standing at the intersection of static “beauty” and dynamic “perception,” the work integrates the viewer’s movements and emotions into the installation itself.
Through a nonverbal experience involving visual, auditory, and tactile elements, the piece evokes a spatial inquiry into the themes of “life and consumption.”
Direction & Concept
Mai Nanaumi｜Born in Katsushika, Tokyo
Founder and Artistic Director of ICE PEDESTRIAN.
An artist, designer, and media art creator
working across multiple disciplines including graphic design, music, installation, and VR/AR.
Notable works include SUSHI IKEBANA and SHIBAMATA VR.
MAINANAUMI.com
Member & Supporter
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Yu Maeda｜Marketing / Direction Support
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Designium Inc.｜Unity + LiDAR Technical Collaboration
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TsukiPROD.｜3D Modeling & Animation
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MASSIC inc.｜8.1ch Sound Design & Mixing
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Yuma Matsuo｜Video & Photography
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Intro Akino｜Project Management & Coordination
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Yasuko Sagasaki (Nozaki Clinic)｜Sponsor / Advisor
Gallery
SHIBAMATA VR｜ 2022
A browser-based VR art project.
Users explore a virtual space modeled after the area around Shibamata Station,
engaging with visual elements and interactive points.
This work offers a new kind of soundscape experience that blends game-like interaction with browser accessibility.
SUSHI IKEBANA
A signature series that reconstructs sushi as an art form,
symbolizing the essence of my artistic practice through a fusion of diverse technologies.
Concept
Each piece conveys a philosophical theme through its materials and form:
Ebi Himawari (Shrimp Sunflower)：Inspired by Van Gogh’s Sunflowers, symbolizing the transience of life.
Kanimiso Higanbana (Crab Miso Red Spider Lily)：Evokes themes of life, death, and reincarnation, based on the symbolic meaning of the red spider lily.
Tako Mandala (Octopus Mandala)：Draws from Carl Jung’s mandala theory to express inner unity and spiritual harmony.
Nozaki Clinic 2023-
At Nozaki Clinic, located in Monzennakacho, Koto Ward, Tokyo, my works are exhibited seasonally throughout the clinic.
Many patients have shared that the artworks provided a sense of healing during their waiting time.
In response to patient requests, fully customized artworks are also available for purchase.
Career
Group Exhibitions
2024
IMAGINARIUM | Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, Tokyo
2023
NOZAKI CLINIC | Tokyo
GLOBAL DAO ART | Singapore
IAA DAO ART | Tokyo
MATTER AND DIGITAL | Seoul
WEPLE OFFICIAL | Seoul
2022
Ginza Bar Art | Tokyo
NFT_NYC 2022 | New York
Crypto Art Tokyo | Virtual Exhibition
2018
SHIBUYA AWARD 2018 – Finalist
SICF19 (Spiral Independent Creators Festival) | Tokyo
Solo Exhibition
2022
SHIBAMATA VR | Virtual Exhibition
Test Marketing
2021
ART EXPERIENCE | Tokyo
Awards & Grants
2025
Tokyo International Foto Awards (TIFA) – Honorable Mention, Fine Art Category (Collage)
2024
10th Fine Art Photography Awards – Nominee, Photomanipulation (Amateur)
2023
London International Creative Competition – Shortlisted, Professional Art Category
MAGINARIUM | Hosted by Nippon TV – Jury Encouragement Award, Free Computing Division
2018
SHIBUYA AWARD 2018 – Finalist
Media Coverage
2024
"U INTERVIEW: Mai Nanaumi" | ukiyo_e_magazine
2023
Nippon TV IMAGINARIUM AWARD | Featured in z studio sensors #9
2021
“Local Support! Tokyo Connection News - Tama” | J:COM Tama
Contact
Support
"I’ll do it alone if I have to. But with you, it could reach the world ten times faster."
"This isn’t just about sushi. It’s art that reexamines what we consume unconsciously every day—
through our own bodies and senses."
Your support will be used for the following purposes:
- Production costs for the realization of the exhibition
- Venue rental and publicity expenses
- Fees for team members and equipment
Ways to Support
- Tiered support options (e.g., ¥10,000 / ¥30,000 / ¥100,000 and up)
- Returns (e.g., name credit, invitation to experience, art merchandise, etc.)
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This beautiful thing would not have existed in this world without you.