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Portraits of Zouki

I scavenge for materials destined for disposal.

For about 30 years, I have been working with Zouki – wood from felled trees – from the Shonan and Izu Peninsula areas of Japan.
This wood is not easy to handle or prepared for sculpture.

The work begins with finding material. I search for trees that are destined to be thrown away: trees that are cut down for development or have fallen due to natural reasons, such as typhoons.

In their untouched state, trees are majestic things.
As a creator, I whittle, carve, sculpt – working with and against the unique shape and vigor of each tree.

My workspace sits on a high hill overlooking a broad stretch of sea, where winds gust up to the mountain ridge behind us.
I work under a wide sky, with no walls or ceiling to hold me in, in a constant face-to-face with nature.
A small cabin nearby is where I take shelter and rest, and at those times I understand why people seek the comfort of enclosures.

Sketches and materials
Imperfect lines & nature’s shapes

In order to be able to carve the shapes I imagine, I practice figure drawing everyday.

Because of this daily sketching discipline, when I turn to carving, I am not constrained only to the shapes found through nature’s laws of physics. Instead, I am able to take control and protract my own found lines.

Creating shapes through daily discipline

Every day, I practice figure drawing and sketching before sketching to create my artwork. By capturing the shapes of nature through sketching, I am able to draw lines that are responsible as an artist, not streamlines or parabolas created by the laws of physics.

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