RESORT GUIDE AKIO SHINYA DANJIRI MATSURI - Powderlife

EYE SPY // art and culture in japanRose artist koharuKOHARU, the roseartist, looks withinto find inspriation.INSPIRED by roses, Koharu is a print artistfrom Tokyo. She graduated from the TokyoNational University of Fine Arts and Music andafter graduation she went onto complete anafter-graduate degree at the same Universityin Art Design. She then married and spentthe next 25 years of her life as a mother. Justbefore she reached her 50’s, she visited NewYork and discovered it was the place shecould work as an artist. Now she resides inNew York, Tokyo and Shanghai, actively workingon her art in three cities.CHAIR BY // masafumi sawadalocal hammer artistBEAUTIFULLY constructed iron and wood structuresmeet you as you walk into local hammer artist MasafumiSawada’s gallery Niseko Ram.MOVING to Niseko 16 years ago, after living inSapporo and establishing Atelier Ram, Sawada-sancan attribute luck and fate to finding his currentgallery location. If he arrived one week later, thisold house would have been knocked down, butSawada-san instinctively knew this position wouldbe perfect for his life in Niseko and asked if he couldtake up residence in the soon-to-be-demolishedbuilding.The gallery is located under the Niseko TownBridge next to the flowing river. Looking out fromthe gallery you can see bare trees covered in whitesnow and various iron animals residing outsidesubmerged in white. A quick glance up above andyou can see the big yellow bridge from a far-lessviewed angle. This isolated location is the perfectplace for Sawada-san; as a hammer artist, Sawadasanmakes a lot of noise when he practices his art.Here, he doesn’t distract anyone and can make asmuch noise as he wants.This local artist has been making wood and ironfurniture for more than 20 years with his hammertools. His custom tables are sought after becauseof their natural aesthetic that can complementmany styles of home design, from modern tomore traditional alpine houses. Lately he has beenexperimenting with making stylised animals out ofhis trademark combination of wood and iron.His works can be as large as they are small.Some are bold and curvy and others are intricatelydetailed. What they share is his love for rawmaterials, which perfectly complement theNiseko area.Sawada-san’s stand-out works have seen himbecome quite renowned in Hokkaido. He has hadcountless exhibitions all over the prefecture andhas works on display permanently at Hokkaido’sWindsor Hotel, New Chitose Airport and closer byat The Hilton Niseko Village. However, a trip to hisgallery in Niseko Town is the best way to experienceSawada-san’s works.@ www.niseko-ram.comKoharu’s work is introspective. When creatingher roses, Koharu looks within to visualise thegarden of flowers that exists in her heart.Capturing the essence and fragrant aroma ofher rose, she is able to translate both onto paper.Using monotype print-making techniques,she creates unique, one-of-a-kind artwork.Her prints are associated with the Japanese‘sho’ or calligraphy – a powerful art frominspired by spirit. The sense of ‘Ma’ or roomand ‘Kukan’ or space, which are unique toJapan, are integral to her work. Instead ofcovering space she embraces it and incorporatesit into her work. In the universe of Zen,she utilises space to enhance a rose and itblossoms beautifully in the feeling of theartist Koharu.@ www.koharuart.comrose print // by koharu29powderlife issue 31 // January 22 to February 4, 2011 www.powderlife.com30powderlife issue 31 // January 22 to February 4, 2011 www.powderlife.com