Artist’s statement  for the exhibition The Wind, The Wind

Toshiko Oiyama

In the stillness of a forest, I think of the air I am floating in. Its calmness belies the howling winds it can turn into any moment. In the vastness of the outback, I think of the wind that has been shaping the landscape, second by second, from the beginning of time. Thinking of the wind, I think of the Buddhist tenet that all is transient.

For me drawing is a way to ask questions. One question I ask is what it means for all things to be in the state of transience. Observing the winds that make the shadows dance and ruffle the sea, I draw and experiment to ask that question.

The multi-panel format that I am using is one such experimentation. Drawings turn into something different visually in response to the adjacent drawings. It is as if by juxtaposing un-related drawings one can start a conversation between them. Another experimentation is the play on the physicality of paper. While the ink or charcoal create illusion of space and depth on paper, puncturing or tearing that same paper demonstrates its physical limit and flatness. The oscillation between the illusionary space on paper and the reminder of the flatness of paper causes in me a sense of vibration and constant change that is transience

Feeling the movements of air on my face, I draw and experiment to think about my question.