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//

Inspiration and miracles are hidden in everyday life. If you look closely, you will realize that the world is full of beauty and things worth painting. In today’s rapidly changing society, I would like to continue to ask myself “Where is the meaning of painting by human hands?

I draw the forms of living creatures by utilizing the material characteristics of pigments such as iwa-enogu (mineral pigments) used in Japanese-style painting. I respect the life force, richness, and scale, including the flow of time, that is inherent in living things, and I want to accumulate a dense sense of life in my paintings. I paint with these thoughts as the axis of my work. Primitive materials such as mineral pigments are also rich in time. It is an irreplaceable stimulus for me to mix and reconcile the material and the spirit in one place, the painting.

As an animal painter, I continue to work mainly with acrylic gouache. I try to express the latent beauty and strength of natural objects. In addition to painting, I also work on murals, live painting and illustration.

I believe that art is free for both the artist and the viewer. I would be happy if the world I want to express matches the world of someone who sees my work. I want to keep drawing my dream in the reality of creation.

No matter how happy or sad we are, no matter what the weather is like, the four seasons always come and go, and the greenery of the trees and plants remind us of the seasons with their gentle flowers. I am always grateful for the unchanging nature of the seasons, which gives me strength and kindness.

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/

I think the way an artist gazes at a motif is the same as the way an astronomer looks up at the night sky. As an artist, I want to keep this curiosity and observational ability to sense the universe in even the most ordinary things until the day I die.