Akiha Yamakami
Medium: Mixed Media Studio Location: Artist Studios at 43-01 22nd Street - Studio# 350 43-01 22nd Street Phone: 6466270285 Email: akihayamakami@gmail.com Website:: http://akihayamakami.net Artist Bio: Akiha Yamakami was born in Nagano Prefecture, Japan in 1984.???She studied at 2009 MA in Printmaking, Lithography major at the graduate school of Tama Art University,Tokyo. She lives and works in New York City from 2012. She creates soft sculpture works with print and cloths upon the theme of human body. She actively presents her work both in Japan and in overseas. Started to collaborate with dance projects a few years ago. She makes costumes for dancers as well. Artist Statement: My interest in the "human body" began in my childhood. Then my interest moved from its outward appearance to the internal organs of the body. Now, it is focused on its genes and invisible cells. It's like a long journey to find imprints left on the human body. Even if the races are different, our bodies are basically the same, and the memories in the body are sometimes so eloquent that they evoke within us even the daily lives of primitive peoples. Now, I continue to create my art in the U.S., trying to represent these invisible human relationships in my art utilizing "textile," the second skin, from the view point of the body, which is at the same time, the nearest but still the farthest existence for us to comprehend. My roots and identity, which I began to see in a land far from my country, are similar with what can be seen from the view point of the bodies of primitive peoples. What on earth makes me what I am? Maybe, I'm looking for the answer to this question through my works. All images and text copyright Akiha Yamakami