In Praise of Fears

The solo exhibition at L-AiR Himeji, Japan, was the outcome of a three months residency and emersion in the historic leather production area of Takagi. The title of the exhibition is inspired by the essay In Praise of Shadows, 1933, by Junichirō Tanizaki. About Japanese aesthetics, interior, architecture and texture of objets.

The works was influenced by the craftsmanship and factory visits I experienced during my residency. I wanted to work with the basic principle of the sculptural process, the skin of a three dimensional animal, becoming a two dimensional surface of leather, and reshaping it back into a three dimensional object again.

The first sculpture in the exhibition “In memory of a Cow” brought this notion to the visitor.

Behind it on the wall hung “Mirror” an old factory mirror from an abandoned family factory that was being demolished during my stay at the residency. The mirror also represents the shift in national and international economy, a shift away from small family run production facilities to large scale industry. All objects were crafted with leather and objects from the area of Takagi.