Kawano Shoko

Kawano Shoko

ARTIST STATEMENT

I was brought up near the ocean. The nearby seashore was my playground. I was fascinated by the forms and shapes of the sea creatures living there and of the shells and rocks that I collected. My interest in sculpture grew during my high school years. An image of Michelangelo’s Pietà made a huge impact on me, and I really wanted to become a sculptor. Over time, I realized that bamboo was my medium. Unlike stone or metal, bamboo has an incredible lightness and pliability that is unique. I like the duality of this medium’s delicacy and strength. Each strip of bamboo I cut is very strong yet so fine and flexible. When the strips are interlaced using open twill plaiting, I can shape the basket into rounded forms using only the natural tension of the bamboo. With the help of urushi, a tree sap lacquer applied as a finish, my baskets appear both transparent and solid at the same time.

I try to express my creativity mostly within the vessel form. Every time I work in my studio, however, I think sculpturally. My consciousness moves from lines to planes, from planes to three dimensional forms, and from three dimensional forms to space. Bamboo is most beautiful standing in a grove that is being swayed by the wind. I cut the bamboo down, split and shave the culms, manipulate the cut strips as I have planned, and hope to create something worthy of its natural beauty. What can I add to something that is already beautiful? Were all my efforts in vain? I ask myself these questions all the time. I can express myself through this medium and continue asking the same questions, as long as someone tells me that they see beauty in my work.