Curatorial Rationale

As I experience more of the world around me, the more I grow closer to the irenic yet numinous essence of nature. In this, the surrounding, tall structures of the city became more overwhelming to me and I found myself becoming wrapped up into my ideal depiction of nature. My exhibition seeks to display these feelings into paintings as words alone cannot express such. 

 

In my arrangement, I focused on the growth and realization of my feelings as I understood the world of nature itself. In this, one might find in the path I forge moments of peace, hesitation, and oneirataxia. The first pieces in my exhibition are La Fille de Fleur and The Eclipse, visualizing the expectations that I had when I was entranced by the idea of living away from the city when I get older. In my state of oneirataxia, I started to imagine only the good side of living in such a way. La Fille de Fleur paints my feelings of an ideal life in a fantastical setting. Its purpose is to show represent myself idolizing this idea and nature, itself, in a figurative manner.  The Eclipse represents me finding love within this environment. The idea of a secluded place with someone, listening to the rain, or watching the stars has always been a recurring dream that I had since I was in primary school. However, such feelings of certainty and happiness can be overshadowed by doubt. 

 

The next piece in my exhibition, Petal Tears, represents my hesitation, my fear of not belonging to my surroundings once I reach there. A question of whether or not these moments of hesitation are voluntary. As I was raised in the suburban/urban area, I have not experienced much of the world around me since everything I needed was in close proximity. This led me to doubt if I would be even able to carry out my dream if I had the chance to. Eccedentesiast and the Redness of a Rose are displayed next as they continue to develop this feeling of doubt. In Eccedentesiast, I alluded to nature being my nepenthe, my source of peace. It was a way for me to run away from my problems and rest, even if it was just a few sounds from my device’s screen. I came to realize that nature was not just allowing me but also a place to mask away myself as well. The Redness of a Rose develops this idea in the portrayal of the rose. Even though it is so beautiful and is the center of the piece, it stabs the human subject and hides her mouth behind its enormous red petals in an attempt to draw our attention away from what is happening. This artwork shows the inner conflict I was having during this time, which was a conflict between ideality and reality. 

 

Despite my hesitation, I always come back to my original feelings, my goals, and more significantly, my dreams. I decided to represent this through movement, in styles that are heavily impacted by the Art Nouveau era and the Ukiyo-e genre. 芸者 (Geisha) exhibits an aspect of the Ukiyo-e genre which is beauty. In this, I incorporated the idea of enjoying the pleasures in life to its fullest in with the design of the geisha’s attire. To illustrate, the swan represents luck, joyfulness and benefits in the future, hence, I would like to achieve these things in that kind of life. Finally, Centifolia, being inspired by Alphonse Mucha’s work, shows a lady in movement with flower petals. Along with the meaning of the title, which means a thousand petals, the composition of this piece represents myself forever moving along with this dream, even if I am not able to accomplish it. 

 

The meaning behind the presentation of my artworks, a dream that will always remain with you, can be applied to with any subject. I have learned that memories and dreams can transcend time since one can never absolutely forget them. With this end, the audience of my exhibition is confronted with this cycle of idolizing, doubt, and realization that many can relate to.