Work Description: This work was made by making a prototype of a newborn baby with a ball-jointed sculpture and tracing it with a wire. Newborns do not stretch their hands or legs for a while even if they are born, probably because they have been in a narrow womb for a long time. With his/her eyes closed, he/she seemed to be meditating with crossed legs. Buddha defines being born as four life sufferings along with aging, getting sick, and dying.
The theme of this work is to eliminate excessive attachment by considering that being born is the beginning of suffering and that the body is like a cage that holds life.
Bio: Aomi Kikuchi is a textile artist based in Kyoto, Japan. She holds a BFA from Kyoto University of Art & Design (Japan) and an MFA from Pratt Institute (USA). Aomi has exhibited her work throughout the world including at Woman’s Essence Show 2020 (Rome), Today’s Silk Road Exhibition (China), LA Art Show Modern + Contemporary (California), and will be exhibited at Art Laguna 2021. Her work is based on Japanese aesthetic principles and the teachings of the Buddha.
“Wabi-sabi”, a well known philosophy that beauty is found in imperfections and “Mono-no-aware”, the feeling of sympathy for that which changes or perishes such as the seasons and all living things. The Buddha states that nothing exists in the same state forever, that what we believe to exist is uncertain and that we can only recognize with our five senses. People feel suffering when they seek something everlasting yet while existence is not eternal, the activities of matter and life are conceptually infinite.
Aomi takes inspiration from the fragility and fleetingness found in natural cycles and in textile. With over 30 years, Aomi has dedicated extensive and immersive practice to Japanese Kimono Haute Couture, Yusen dyeing techniques, and silk fabrics after becoming a fashion designer. This background inspires her artistic exploration and her artwork utilizes various textile materials and techniques including extremely thin fibers, goose down, and cotton flower along with knitting, weaving, embroidery, and other craft techniques.
She is currently working on several series of installation pieces, innovative embroidery works, and sculptures. In these works she explores the concept of impermanence and infinity through the use of biology and nature with textiles and waste.