Apri 1st to September 1st 2023
Title: Woman 2022
Year: 2022
Media: Wire, Fiber
Dimension: 70 x 12 x 10cm (27”x5”x4”)
In 2018, I created a work titled woman. Given the differences in race and gender, I realized that if we remove the skin and muscles from the human body, we all have the same ivory bones. And when I put long hair on the skull, it looked like a woman to me. I myself was surprised that I have a stereotype that I have cultivated over many years. This time, after weaving the shape of the skull with wire, I planted hair on the scalp one by one. People who have seen this work think that it is a female skull from the title and appearance. We feel like we see reality as it is, but we are often influenced by prejudice that our brain derives from experience. Recognizing this will lead to awareness of various contradictions in modern society, and will lead to the realization of a better society.
Title: Suffering Tofu
Year: 2022
Media: Cotton Fiber, Silk Gauze, Tofu Maker
Dimension: 15x12x15 cm
Death is one of the four inevitable sufferings that the Buddha preached. I focused on "death" among them and expressed the skull as a tofu relief. Tofu originated in China and is now widely used as a daily food in many countries. On the other hand, although death is not inevitable and can come to anyone anywhere in the world, we treat it like something special and avoid thinking about it in our daily lives. In 2017, I drew a skull for the first time in a work titled "Moment-2", which uses a courtesan as a motif. Until then, it was taboo for me to draw or create skeletons. This is because I felt negative energy, including death, in skeletons. But observing and drawing the skull, the kind of fear I had disappeared. In my work, "Woman", I realized that if the skin and muscles were removed, everyone would have ivory bones, regardless of race or gender. Since then, the skeleton has become a symbol of non-discrimination for me.
Title: Fortune Catcher-2
Year: 2022
Media:Silk Gauze, Mohair Yarn
Dimension: 12” round, 30cm
This work is one of the Fortune Catcher series. I embroidered a spider web in a rectangular shape.
For spiders, the web is his catcher of fortune that brings food. Various cultures have auspicious items, which are given as gifts to pray for good health and success. Buddha said that life is suffering, but that does not negate the hope that something good will happen. I believe that praying for the happiness and success of others, including ourselves, is a caring form of love. I hope that this work will bring peace and stability to the world and allow people to live casual lives.
In 2018, I made my first spider web using threads from frayed silk organza fabric. And last year, I noticed a new perspective that spider webs are fortune catchers that catch food for spiders. Until then, I had a slightly negative image of spider webs, even though I was making them. By discovering such a new way of looking at things, I hope to deliver a new perspective that transforms the anxieties and fears in our hearts into something positive through art.