Yuka Sasahara Gallery is pleased to announce the opening of a first solo exhibition by Aya Tanimura from May 16th to June 20th.

Aya Tanimura (1983-) predominately works with woodcarving and pencil drawings.

The works are made from twigs that have been peeled of their bark and carved into braids. In their freshly peeled form, the color of these twigs resemble that of human skin, which the artist noticed as her own hands touched and worked with the medium. In due time, the twigs darken and change from the color of human skin to that of human hair. 
These works have been created to combine the concepts of ‘wood’ as a material, the ‘braid’ as a motif, the artist herself as she comes in contact with these elements, and the passage of time.

In the drawings that were produced on Japanese paper or Japanese thin paper, the tied-up hairs look as though they are multiplying and swelling.

The hair and the braids that appear in Tanimura's work depict the artist’s notion, feelings and sense of time: things that happen in the ‘moment’ and the things that happen with ‘the passage of time'. These issues are sensitively dealt with and reflected within the artist's work.

Even though this method of working is an unstable one ― the change in color of the twigs cannot be predicted ― this passage of time and the 'spontaneity' of the moment in which the drawings are made are considered by Tanimura as necessary processes of her works.

We hope you enjoy Tanimura’s work which has already gained popularity at Art@Agnes 2009.