かげ Kagé, 2024
Crocheted nylon and wool, broken kawara tile
32cmL x 17cmW x 35cmH
Inspired by readings of the book ‘In Praise of Shadows’ by Jun'ichirō Tanizaki, this work was created to be seen in the dark, revealing its silhouette with light tracing its curves. Where the shadow falls, the mind perceives. The asymmetrical silhouette encourages viewing from different perspectives, suggesting that what we see might not be an entire truth.
Created in Kyoto during a residency, Kagé was filled with broken Kawara (clay roof) tiles of the studio before burning, to give it weight and shape. Having visited the House of Kawai Kanjiro, a potter who co-founded the mingei (folk art) movement, I wanted to create a vessel that had beauty in its imperfection, defying the usual expectations of an ornamental vase.
“Fire in my hand,
A cold ball of Fire,
Fire which has changed its shape
Hidden in the clay
...Pottery”
“The prayer of fire,
T o melt, to melt!
That is the prayer of fire.”
- We Do Not Work Alone (1953), Kawai Kanjiro (translated by Ueda Yoshiko)
Fire that gave life to humankind baked Kawai Kanjiro’s clay vessels; that same flame burns this crocheted vessel all over, setting its final form. The fire devours nylon with its nature, but is meek against the inner wool layer.
In Japanese, ‘Kagé’ can be read as 「影」or 「陰」. Meaning ‘shadow’ or ‘yin’ (in yin-yang) respectively, it hints at an ‘other’ self that always exists within a whole.