Panel four - Selected by Sayoko HASEGAWA
Curator Comment by Sayoko HASEGAWA about “Phoenix” by TAKEDA Ai
TAKEDA Ai took ‘cultivate’ to mean ‘to raise’.
She says that she would not have created this work without this meaning of ‘to raise’.
The bold composition of the phoenix, aiming upward, gives us a positive feeling.
It must be a beautiful day, because the green earth below is spread out and a large black shadow is cast. I could picture a phoenix flying freely in the wind with its large wings, and I felt very good.
She says that she loves animals and usually draws a lot of them, and that when she was a little girl, she saw a hawk flying at her grandmother's house, which left an impression on her.
The warmth of the work, as if directly touched by the heat of a person's body, even though it is drawn using an electronic device, is probably due to the fact that it is filled with her memories and feelings.
Curator Comment by Sayoko HASEGAWA about “Tied Up” by Maria VARNEY
In the artist’s mind, ‘cultivate’ evolved into ‘abundance’ and then into the word ‘excess’.
She says that she used the image of ‘meat overflowing through net’ to visualize the concept of ‘excess’.
Starting with agriculture, she was attracted to the cauliflower's ‘gathering of the same things’ and from there developed into exploring various other things, leading to the meat that is the source of this work.
In the process of creation that she showed me, there was a strong sense of inquiry into things that she was genuinely interested in, and an unwavering creation of her own world view. I was convinced that it was the many processes that led to this form.
When you see this work in front of you, you may feel enveloped by the overflowing shadows expressed here, perhaps because of the reassurance of her accumulated thoughts.
TAKEDA Ai (Artist)
Born in Tokyo. She is enrolled in the Design Course at Joshibi College of Art and Design. She likes animals, so she draws animal works with colored pencils and digitally. She also often reproduces her favorite movies.
Instagram: @ai.elsart HP: SUZURI/https://suzuri.jp/QueenAi
Maria VARNEY (Artist)
Born in Lima, Peru. She is enrolled in the Textiles & Fashion Specialism in the Art & Design Foundation Studies Course at Loughborough University.
Her artworks varies from portraiture to textile design and sculpture.
HASEGAWA Sayoko (Curator)
Born in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. She is enrolled in the Concentration in Art and Culture at Joshibi University of Art and Design. She belongs to the Art Representation Seminar, and the Art Anthropology Seminar. She is interested in contemporary art and has worked as a staff member for events and exhibitions. She also likes music and plans to start learning it.