Hattori Makiko: Coming to Life: Vernal Expressions in Clay

COMING TO LIFE: VERNAL EXPRESSIONS IN CLAY
New Work by Hattori Makiko
MAY 2, 2023 – JUNE 16, 2023

This spring, two Japanese ceramic artists, still early in their careers, consider the timely themes of birth and growth in all new works created for Joan B Mirviss LTD. Artist Hattori Makiko presents highly textural sculptures that recall natural forms such as nests or eggs. Through her latest exploration of vernal themes, she strives to express a sustained wonder at the miraculous and delicate nature of life.

In her second solo exhibition at Joan B Mirviss LTD, Hattori Makiko (b. 1984) exhibits her richly textured sculptural forms covered in thousands of bundled ribbons of clay. Each strand is so fine and delicate that it is pulled and gathered using a needle and then painstakingly applied, one by one. Through this extraordinarily time-consuming process, Hattori meticulously covers the entire exterior and interior surfaces of each work. The overall effect of such subtle handiwork is a surface rippling with mysterious crevices, like a coral reef teeming with life. She does not glaze or apply color, so as to further draw close attention to the form and its sharply defined texture. Due to the time required to create even one such intricate sculpture, we are fortunate to present seven astonishing sculptures in Coming to Life, representing two years of steadfast production.

Hattori Makiko's work can be found in the collections of many museums across the United States, including: the Chazen Art Museum, University of Wisconsin-Madison, WI; Cincinnati Art Museum, OH; Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento, CA; Minneapolis Institute of Art, MN; and Samuel P. Harn Museum of Art, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL. Additionally, her work is in the permanent collections of major international museums such as the Taipei County Yingge Ceramics Museum, Taiwan; Victoria and Albert Museum, London, UK; and the Musée national des arts asiatiques – Guimet, Paris, France, where her sculpture was exhibited and published last year.