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Seiko Kinoshita, textile artist • Exhibitions • Rain Rain
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icysquare
sunnysquare
brown
never

More about these pieces

‘Rain Rain’ was an exhibition by Seiko that ran from the 5th to the 28th October 2006 at the Persistence Works, Sheffield.

Float

float

For a long time, this is my dream.

I want to float in the sky, without any effort, just floating without any power.

I used to draw this on paper a lot, but now I am a weaver, so I have woven it.

100 Woven paper mobiles:
paper yarn, direct dye

Ama Oto 雨音 (Rain Sound)

ama oto

This is my first collaboration work with Gillian Brent.

Before we start to work, we talked a lot about possible idea. We both wanted to do a work relating to this Persistence Works building and RAINRAIN exhibition.

It was really interesting and exciting experience for me. Although we use completely different materials for our personal work, we have found that we use very similar approach to create things.

The funniest experience from this collaboration was that our original idea didn’t work at all.

We did try many different materials with these steel frames which we designed together. But none of them has worked. The finally, we decided we only use steel.

I just want to say BIG THANK YOU to Gill for her patience to work with me.

We have a new different idea for the next already.

Seven Architectural frames: steel, paint
Each size: 30×400×25cm

Passion in Brown

passion in brown

When I went back to Japan, I watched one TV Programme about one famous Japanese Actress. She was one of most famous and beautiful actress in past.

One media reporter asked her in a party ‘Why do you always wear the brown colour kimono, in other word a sober colour? I think Bright colour will suit you more, why don’t you try pink or red…’ She answered ‘Because I just like Brown colour, I think Brown is the colour has kept very strong passion to itself, that passion is as powerful as Red.’

I thought it is really true. When I dye my yarns, I know how much red I use to make my brown colour. I was so impressed how she describe about a colour. After she passed away, her close friend disclosed its reason. Her husband was an unpopular play writer whole his life. Everywhere she goes, she didn’t want to stand out in crowd or party situation. Because all media persons just ignore his existence next to her. She always took his feeling into consideration…

She passed away a long time ago, and Sheffield is far away from Japan. I wanted to show her secret passion in my brown work.

Hand dyed & woven wall panels:
direct dye, paper yarn, wood
Each Size: 35×65×4cm

After Rain

afterrain

I was just finishing off ‘Gentle Rain-English Rain’ in November 2003 for SUSPENDED exhibition. When I was cutting off the edge of long woven pieces, I unintentionally looked down my studio floor. I saw all scattered mixed coloured paper yarns on the floor, they looked much more interesting and exciting than the work I was doing at that time.

I asked myself. ‘What am I doing everyday in my studio?’

Three Window shelves installation:
wooden box, paint, hand dyed paper yarn
Each Size: 16×175×4cm

Rain Rain

rain rain image

I love England.
I love Sheffield.
I love my studio.
I love my life here.
I love what I do.

I am very happy about my life, and feel I am very lucky.

But sometimes, many problems attack me and I get stuck… I don’t know what to do, and I feel I can’t move. All of a sudden, massive loneliness occupies my mind and I start to cry.

One sunny spring day, I was crying, because it was a too sunny, blue sky day. That colour looked so bright and all the world looked so happy except for me. Then I realised I was missing rain, rain… English rain. I don’t know what it is, but its raining sound and visual vagueness calm me down and bring a kind of therapy effect.

Tie dye paper yarn installation: paper yarn, direct dye, wood, screws
Each size: 270×300cm

NEVER

never

‘Never’ is such a strong word.

I didn’t notice how this word could be harmful until this year.

One person said to me ‘I’ve never thought…’

I got really hurt not by this whole sentence, the fact that person used the word ‘NEVER’ in this sentence. After that, only the word ‘Never’ was repeated again and again in my head.

I checked up ‘NEVER’ in my English–Japanese dictionary.

いまだかつて~ない
一度も~ない
決して~ない
まさか~ではあるまい
(*今ばかりでなく、これからもという含みがある)

This is maybe, we don’t use ‘NEVER’ in this situation in Japanese, because you really don’t need to use NEVER to explain it as well as too strong and hurtful meaning. But I realised how often, and how easily I use the word ‘NEVER’ in everyday life here in the UK.I thought I might be upsetting people by using NEVER without thinking.

I thought it is like a door mat, nobody takes a big notice about this existence, and without thinking we step on everyday.

Site specific work: one off designed door mat
Size: 165×60cm

Blue Veil

blue veil

I like watching raining from my studio window, especially when rain drops start to make the line on my window. Those lines and the mistiness of rain looks beautiful to me and looks like a veil between real and unreal world.

Hand dyed paper wall piece:
paper yarn, direct dye, wood Size: 125×300cm

Icy Square
Sunny Square

icy square

The Weaving on the loom is a vertical and horizontal world. After weaving on my loom a lot, I get tired of this kind of restricted world.

So I sometimes weave freely, off from the loom, I can go anywhere I want to.

Wall panels:
paper yarn, direct dye, pva glue, Perspex, steel fixing
Each size: 40×106×4cm