YAMAGUCHI Ai, "hoshi"

YAMAGUCHI　Ai, shitagie ni kieru nami, 2012, acrylic on cotton, blanket and panel φ20.5×5ｃｍ, photo by MIYAJIMA Kei, (c)ai yamaguchi・NINYU WORKS, Courtesy Mizuma Art Gallery

It's the last week of YAMAGUCHI Ai's solo exhibition "hoshi" at Mizuma Art Gallery (November 21st - December 22nd 2012) and we wisely thought to refer to this art event.

In 2012, Yamaguchi has been vigorously active, presenting her new works in a solo show at the 10 Chancerylane Gallery in Hong Kong, China, in a group show at the Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, and during the PIP&POP two-person exhibition at Spiral Garden in Tokyo, Japan. In the present exhibition, the paramount of this year's achievements, the artist turns back to the origin of her work as she paints girls responding to her own self-constructed ideal of Beauty on unique "futon canvases". This series of pieces goes down to the fundamental essence of Yamaguchi's work, but at the same time intensifying them as well.

The verses kakikurashi [In the dark] / furu shirayuki no [The falling white snow] / shita gie ni [Melting at its bottom] / kiete mono omou [I keep on thinking of things who were] / koro ni mo aru ka na [Is it the season?]
from a poem of the Kokin Wakashu have been used to name the four pieces of the series. They are composed by the artist deforming and recomposing shunga; Japanese erotic woodblock images, following her own interpretation. She also uses innovative supporting materials with kimono inspired patterns and incorporated it on the round "futon canvases".

12 years have passed since Yamaguchi started out her career as an artist. This correspond to 12 years spent depicting these alter egos in the shape of young girls. During all these time, she has been striving to fulfil her childhood wish of "painting beautiful things", transforming it with the mind of a maturing artist, which brings major significance to her artworks.

The exhibition title "hoshi" (stars) comes from Yamaguhi's wish for her creations to act as bright signs. Since the old times, there have been lodestars guiding the travelers and people who wished upon them. In the same way, Yamaguchi's artworks might very well show us the way to new visual landscapes.