We are pleased to present Aomi Kikuchi, an artist who works across creative disciplines but is connected throughout with a commitment to transformation and compassion, as part of our latest feature in Singulart magazine. Inspired by Buddha’s teachings on impermanence, Aomi draws on the mono no a-wa-re tradition of Japanese aesthetics (translated as ‘the distinct beauty of things passing’), and the Wabi-Sabi concept (loosely translated as the grace in ‘things in decay’), Aomi explores themes of desire, suffering and emotional renewal.
Aomi Kikuchi uses her artistic voice to reflect on the human condition and to speak to who we can be in our responses to cravings and suffering, and the compassion that we must embody to be human. Kikuchi’s work is focused on the effects of greed and there is something about it that helps transform fear and aversion into positive energy for viewers to see. Connected to her search for personal and social struggles, she crafts a powerful story of healing through empathy.
An insatiable curiosity and an eclectic mastery of handcraft techniques such as dressmaking, kimono dyeing, ceramics, Japanese embroidery and Urushi-lacquer have all contributed to her journey as an artist. One of her practices explores the tension between art and craft, pushing into new territories that merge rapidly changing art with the durability of craft, opening up the possibilities of craft to a new range of contemporary expression.
Let’s explore Aomi Kikuchi’s aesthetic philosophy, her inspirations, and her vision to revolutionize the art and craft intersection.
What is your newest series?
Recently, I have been mainly producing sculptures using wool fiber and works based on the concept of developing digital photos through weaving, which I call “pixel weaving”. In addition, I have started to produce works using a weaving technique called Tsuzure Ori.
What was or is the inspiration or concept behind this new series?
Wool fiber sculptures have the same milky white, soft surface as marble sculptures, but they are polar opposites in terms of weight, durability, fragility, and the possibility of repair and reconstruction. A comparative study of my wool sculptures and marble sculptures is important in locating the meaning of my creations in the context of art history. In today’s world, where artistic materials that have been used as if they were inexhaustible despite being finite are being reevaluated, I believe that using materials shorn of sheep for the health of sheep is also meaningful from an environmental perspective.The concept of the work is based on the Buddha’s teachings about the impermanence, insubstantiality, and suffering of this world, and the Japanese aesthetic of “wabi-sabi” (imperfection) and “mono-no-a-wa-re” (merciful mind).Works created so far in 2024 are four and each titled Infinity-Crime, Suffering-Pain, Moment-Spawn, and Peace.
Pixel weaving is a process in which squares called pixels, which are the components of digital photos, are woven together one by one, like developing a photo. Each pixel is a small piece of woven fabric measuring 3cm square. The work I recently completed is based on Basquiat’s portrait. I received unused thread from the studio of Yoshida, a craftsman who has been teaching weaving in Nishijin, Kyoto for a long time, and dyed it with indigo, from dark to light colors, while considering the shades of the pixels. I used threads of various thicknesses by adjusting the number of thread bundles.
After experiencing weaving at the Textile Art Center, I studied weaving in Nishijin, Kyoto, one of the world’s leading textile production areas. This piece uses a technique called Tsuzure weaving. Tsuzure weaving originated from Egyptian Coptic weaving and evolved in its own way in Nishijin, Kyoto. I wove this piece using paper threads I received from Yoshida Kobo on a loom that came to my studio from the Nishijin Textile Center.During the COVID-19 pandemic, Chinese people protested against the country’s strict regulations with white paper. When I got the white paper threads, I wanted to make a work of art out of that incident. To represent the country of China, I used the image of the most popular panda, named “Huan Hua.” I wove the white parts of the panda’s face and body with white threads. White has images of purity, cleanliness, and divinity. I think it also had an image of nothingness. However, through this incident, I witnessed that white paper can say more than tens of thousands of words.I put shredded paper inside the weaving to represent the fact that the protest of the white paper did not reach the government.
What’s the message behind your new series?
About the four works, I made with wool fiber“Infinity Crime” has both arms shaped like infinity, expressing the fact that crime never ends and that many crimes are committed with the hands.
“Suffering Pain” was created with the theme of pain. This work uses my left hand as a model and is pierced with a hair ornament that I have lacquered. There was a time when “kanzashi” (hair ornament) was a weapon for women to protect themselves. Pain creates suffering. Does the intensity of pain we feel change depending on race or gender? If we want to avoid emotional and physical pain, shouldn’t we also not inflict it on others.
“Moment-spawn” is a sculpture of the moment when a female salmon swam upstream and spawn. When spawning, salmon open their mouths as if their jaws are coming off. It is the moment when they exert their last vitality, and when spawning is finished, the salmon dies. I wanted to express the dynamism of living in my work.
“Peace” was created after I saw a cat sleeping in a basket in front of a showcase of a store in the past. In Japan, sleeping cats are considered a symbol of peace, and a sculpture of one is displayed on the gate of Toshogu Shrine, where Tokugawa Ieyasu, who established the longest-lasting peace during the samurai government, rests. How precious peace is is clear when you look at the state of areas hit by war. It is also clear that conflicts and wars cannot be easily ended once they have begun, as is clear when you look at Gaza and Ukraine, which are still at war today. I put my prayer for peace into the sleeping cat.
The pixel weaving motif of Basquiat represents the transience of our lives. He was able to leave a big mark on art history in his all-too-short life, but I think he wanted to live longer and move his art forward. No one can predict for sure when their life will end, so we should live each and every day to the fullest.
What’s your personal highlight of the series?
"Blank Paper” is a work that depicts the fact that there are many worlds in the world where people cannot speak freely. In such a world, I realized that a blank piece of paper, which represents the inability to write anything, can convey much more than what can be written on paper, so I created this work using white thread and shredded Japanese paper, representing China with a panda.
“Blank Paper” was woven after learning only the basics of Tsuzure weaving. In order to represent the panda’s fur, I turned what would normally be the back side onto the front side. With no prior experience, I attempted to weave a 90cm wide piece of fabric. With any piece, I work with the material and finish it into the shape I envision, but with weaving, the woven parts are rolled up so you cannot see the whole picture, and expressing the shape and color with thread is not the same as painting with a brush where you can paint many surfaces at once. I think that gaining new experiences like these is the true joy of being an artist. This piece, which I completed by facing the loom and tackling many new experiences, can be a highlight of my recent work.
Moreover, is there a particular piece in the series that you’re most fond of? Why?
About Moment Spawn. Taking human ego as my theme, I have been creating works using motifs of fish that have been selectively bred by humans, such as goldfish and carp.Salmon are now farmed, but salmon born and raised in the wild go down the river where they were born, live in the sea for 3 to 5 years, and then return to the river where they were born. When they go upstream against the current of the river, their bodies become covered in wounds. They use their last bit of strength to spawn and end their lives.
When salmon return to the river, they become food for mountain creatures and enrich the mountain soil. The salmon’s upstream migration teaches us that there is an important invisible work in the workings of nature. As salmon farming increases, the sea is polluted by the feces of farmed salmon, and there is a problem that wild salmon cannot return.I created this work with respect for salmon that risk their lives to leave offspring, and with the hope that salmon will continue to be able to swim upstream.
If you encountered any challenges during the creation of this series, how did you manage to tackle and overcome them?
I started making wool sculptures through self-education. Then I learned how to harden and shape wool through experience. Furthermore, I have invented my original pixel weaving by trial and error, using a small loom for darning how to create large two-dimensional works. I also learned the basics of Tsuzure work from a Nishijin craftsman in Kyoto, but I only made a sampler and weaving with paper and large sizes were challenges. An artist can receive criticism, but if they are instructed on how to create something, it cannot be called the artist’s work. A work is formed through a dialogue with myself. When something goes wrong, I try to fix it or start making it again. This will allow me to create more efficiently, eliminate what I don’t need, and find ways to move my art forward.
How would you recommend a visitor to experience your creation?
We live in a world where various stereotypes and prejudices are imprinted on us by the education we have received and the environment in which we have lived. In the online world, algorithms function so that we only see what we want to see.I believe that art can provide viewers with an opportunity to step away from such everyday life, to observe things from a slightly different angle than before, to think a little more deeply about things that they have not thought about very deeply, and to question things that they have taken for granted. Such experiences enrich our life experiences. I hope that by changing the negative feelings that viewers have about things into positive ones, they will feel a little more peaceful and have the space to be considerate of others.
What kind of engagement or interaction do you hope to have with your audience?
I primarily use online media to promote my work. In addition to my own website, I also have pages and directories for my art on galleries and non-profit sites. My website’s blog includes information about my exhibitions, publications and awards.I would appreciate it if the audience could take a look at it.
What's next for you? Are you already working on a new series or project?
I am preparing to weave a Tsuzure-ori piece. I have set the warp threads, drawn a sketch, and will use as much of the thread I inherited from Yoshida Kobo as possible. On the large loom, I will weave a motif of a young boy called “Chigo”, who is said to be a messenger of the gods at the Gion Festival, a famous festival in Kyoto.
On the loom for weaving kimonos and obi, I will weave a motif of a goldfish. This time, I will weave a motif that is often featured, but in the future, I would like to explore innovative Tsuzure weaving by taking up less commonly used motifs such as electrocardiograms and PET-CT scans.
The next motif for pixel weaving will be Freddie Mercury. He also impressed us with the transience of life.The wool sculpture will be based on my grandmother coming out of the bath. It was the last memory I saw her standing on her own, and I must have been around 6 or 7 years old. But that image is burned into my mind and I can’t forget it.I am currently working on a larger spider web piece after completing titled Bosom Cosmos piece, which I plan to work on bit by bit over time, using yarn I have left over from other projects or that I have no other use for.
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