Kamakura, 2010
My work is always inspired by nature’s ephemeral and fantastic phenomena as well as the social activities that engage with them. I enjoy watching each season’s theatrical scenes such as cherry-blossom petals swirling in spring, lightning bugs dancing around in summer, red leaves softly fluttering down in fall, and snowfall in winter.
Growing up in the northwest part of Japan, where snow was my playground, I have always dreamt of building Kamakura, an igloo-like snow house. Neighbors used to gather together to build snow houses for their children. They lit candles inside snow houses as kids sang songs and ate their favorite rice cakes inside. While we still enjoy seasonal gifts of nature, the activity of building Kamakura has become uncommon for today’s children.
Kamakura is an installation, which illustrates moments of such fragile beauty and that reflects the importance of family gathering. The installation consists of a cave like structure (approximately 6’ x 6’ x 7’), pillows inside the cave, with many small balls floating around (2-5 inches diameter). All the components of this installation are made with white fabric. The cave and the balls are suspended and connected by white yarn. Audiences are encouraged to step inside the cave and sit on the white stumps. Numbers of very small LED lights are placed inside the small balls and shine softly at night. The installation presents dramatic changes as sun goes down.