My work is hybrid of sculpture, painting and installation. In my work I explore the fleeting colours of the natural world and question the complex interplay of light, atmosphere and the human perceptual system. Finding the inner light in all things mundane inspires me, and it is these moments of reverie that are embodied in the work.

While it shares a common aesthetic with Minimalism in austere and geometric forms, it departs from Minimalism in its tactile nature and labour intensiveness, in which it touches Feminist Art ideologies of the 60s and 70s. The other significant philosophical influence on my work is the Light and Space Movement, in particular James Turrell and Robert Irwin.

Each work is a journey of discovery through play and observation, where the destination remains open. I deal with the microcosm in order to gain access to the universal that exists both within and around it, and explore the paradox between the functional and the meditative, archetypal forms of making. Creating is a form of meditation for me; I enjoy the slow evolution as the work comes into being.
- Yukako Shibata

*image (left)
Yukako Shibata
Shadowfall: Blue
Oil paint on MDF. 32 x 26 cm
courtesy of the artist