Artist Statement

 

Chiaki Kamikawa (Born 1976, Kanagawa, Japan) lives and works in Paphos, Cyprus

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Kamikawa works predominantly with paintings and drawing, and has also worked with printmaking, sculpture and large scale installations.

 

Kamikawa’s works explore the border between reality and fantasy.

Her detailed works tell stories set in a parallel world; the domestic settings, landscapes, architecture and still life are filled with human and non-human characters, and imaginary spirits,

The works strongly reflect her own experiences and memories from the past to the present.  Born and raised in Japan, she has affectionate feelings to the animism in which all the things in the world (nature, objects, even words), possess the spirits, therefore deserve the respect. For Kamikawa, animism is the foundation of Japanese culture and it determines her attitude towards the surrounding world and how to live the daily life.  Besides the elements such as Japanese ceramics, woodcut prints, Japanese letters and textile patterns are manifesting in her works, suggesting nostalgic and romantic feelings to the traditions of her homeland. 

Kamikawa has lived almost her entire adulthood in Europe; the U.K., the Netherlands, and Cyprus.  Her experiences in these western countries further romanticized the animism and this led her ideas of reviving the spirits from Japanese folklore in the western settings.

Kamikawa has been living in Cyprus since 2007 and the landscape and culture of Cyprus have largely impacted her works.  She emphasizes an authentic relationship with the theme and locality she works with.  It is important for her that she has personal connection and affection to the locality when she takes certain inspirations from it.

Another significant aspect in Kamikawa’s work is humors. Looking at her works, whether it is still life or a scene with spirits, the viewers can sense the artist’s enjoyment of making art work.  It is as if she places the little tricks in the art work so that the viewers find little characters hiding in the corners. There are giggly eyes, Japanese texts appearing as if they are visible in the air, monsters and shadowy figures and so on. The more you look, the more you find.