Ayaka Umeda pursues new pictorial expression using the traditional dyeing technique of wax dyeing. Wax dyeing is a pattern-dyeing technique in which heated wax is dipped into a brush and allowed to permeate the cloth, thus preventing the dye from entering the permeated area. The reason why Umeda expresses herself through dyeing is because she feels the possibility of expressing a world beyond her imagination. The dye particles that move on the water cannot be completely controlled. Unlike painting, dyeing is said to be something you “become” rather than something you “do,” and it sometimes creates a world that no one could have imagined. Umeda expresses various themes with wax dyeing based on the nature around her which she has been familiar with since her childhood, out of her urge to see the new world created by dyeing. Ayaka Umeda HP https://ayakaumeda-art.com//

I believe that realism is the key to good drawing. How realistic can you draw? This is due to the fact that since I was a child I have always thought that a picture that looks like a photograph is a good picture, and even now I am practicing to improve my realism in terms of technique. However, I don’t think it is necessarily true that a good picture with high realism is a good picture. If realism were everything, there would be nothing better than photography. I think a good picture is one that stirs the imagination of the viewer. I think people are creatures that want to have their imagination stimulated. Because we know that our life can be changed depending on our imagination. My imagination has been nurtured by my paintings, so I want to become a painter whose paintings can stimulate someone’s creativity. I believe that in order to express imagination clearly, it is important to have a solid basic technique. There is nothing more frustrating than not being able to f

I use metal forging and engraving techniques. I cut out animals and ordinary scenes from everyday life and make them into works of art. I hope you can feel the fascination of metal materials.

I mainly create works using cats and people as motifs. I hope I could touch someone’s heartstrings by sublimating what I am attracted to and what I find fragile and beautiful into my works through my own filter.   Masaaki Hikita HP http://www.masaakihikida.com/