Slow Slaughters
‘Personal tragedy and natural disaster often can be slow, quiet, and invisible much like climate change, but powerful beauty can be found in such poignant moments.’ Michiko Yamamoto
Slow Slaughters -Main Installation, 2019, mixed media (Japanese paper clay etc.), 4m x 7m x 2.5m
This installation reflects my father’s dying and the fragility of life and nature. In the initial stages of creation, I was trying to concentrate on the concept of climate change, attempting to separate the individual distress from the initial idea of environmental art. However, because my father’s terminal illness was so dominating, I began to make clay sketches responding to the experience combining my thoughts about him with the images of our disappearing nature. By mixing images, such as my father’s skinny hand and a dead branch, the outcomes became harmonized and made me realize that we are all integral elements of nature.
Slow Slaughters -Main Installation, 2019, mixed media (Japanese paper clay etc.), 4m x 7m x 2.5m
All the shapes are made from my thoughts that used to exist in a safe place in my head. Some objects may seem familiar – but not quite. The lack of color, weight, details, and definitions suggest a delicate yet controlled balance, reflecting the condition and fragility of the nature around us.
Slow Slaughters -Jiro my father’s dog (same theme, different version), 2019, Japanese paper clay, 7cm x 15cm
Jiro was my father’s dog which had a fierce loyalty to my father. Jiro died right before the day of my father’s passing as if he decided to go with his owner.
Slow Slaughters -Rinne (same theme, different version), 2019, mixed media (Japanese paper clay etc. fixed on the wall), 4m x 7m x 2.5m
Japanese term 輪廻（Rinne) means “a cycle of reincarnation”. Same as the main installation of Slow Slaughters, this work reflects my father’s dying and the fragility of life and nature.