Fondle, Please Show

Upcoming show -- "Fondle, Please"    2012 Annual Sculpture Guild Show
Place:  The Diver Studio 424 S. Commerce, Wichita, KS 67202
Date:  April 27- May 10, 2012
Opening Reception:   April 27,  2012  5:00pm - 10:00pm

       Recently, I joined Sculpture Guild and am going to show my installation art piece in their annual show at the Diver Studio in downtown Wichita for this coming Final Friday.
    

The idea developed while I was working at the site.  With the help of Guild members and the staffs and house artists at the Diver studio, I was able to tackle this space with 14' high ceiling. 

Because the theme of the show is 'touchable arts' and the title is 'Fondle, Please.", I came up with the idea of this kind of 'feather balls'.   

 The work in progress

Trying different light settings

     This is the first time to show my work at S. Commerce Street which is known as Wichita's art district.  

     The Entrance of the Diver Studio

    

      There is a bus like this on the street.

     Several galleries, artists' studios, and art related companies and stores are located on this street.  It is just south of  an arena where big sport games and concerts are held.  Actually, when the planning for this arena was happening, there was a word that this Commerce Street district could be demolished and become a parking lot for this new arena.  The Commerce Street Art District Association tried to make it politically impossible by having as many art events possible.  They survived and now the Commerce Street is a thriving art district.  In evenings of Final Friday event, this street gets packed with many art gallery crawlers.  My work is going to be a part of it this time.  I am very excited!

'Hisakatano' in Insular Habitat Show

     I exhibited an installation art piece titled 'Hisakatano' in a show together with works by other five artists in the 'Alternative Media Process' class that I am auditing at WSU.

      This is a mixed media installation with lights, mirrors, paper, and thread.  The image of this work was inspired by cherry blossoms and the shoji window of a Japanese house.  I cut each petal of the cherry blossom out of the paper using an exacto knife and created another kind of flower on the floor.  The paper and their images are visible in the mirrors and their reflection are visible on the walls as well as on the papers.  This exchange continues in a loop.  I am using these effects and multiple layers of light and shadow to express my thoughts as a sojourner who keeps sending her thoughts to her original place as well as her current place.  I really like how it turned out with a lot of unexpected interesting happenings.  It works very well conceptually as well.

     The title of this piece, 'Hisakatano' is from a waka, a Japanese short poem, by Kino Tomonori from the 9th century.  The word hisakatano itself does not have a meaning, but it is a word that goes with the word 'the light'.  The poem goes like this:

Hisakatano hikarinodokeki harunohini
Shizukokoronaku hananochiruramu
ひさかたの　光のどけき春の日に
しづ心なく　花の散るらむ
It translates to:
On such a light tranquil spring day,
Why do the cherry blossoms fall like restless thoughts?

     The poem can be interpreted in several ways, but when I finished this piece, it reminded me of this poem.  I think it is a very beautiful and emotional poem.
 
     The color changes depending on different light settings although the color of the light itself is the same, just like cherry blossoms slightly change their colors depending on the time of day and the weather.

      See some more images and the artist statement here. 

http://chiyokomyose.com/section/298717_Hisakatano_Installation_3.html

     As a group exhibition, we had good variety and I think the show was pretty impressive.  Installing works together in the gallery with live webcam and watching the opening reception online were also fun.