Yumiko Ono
Yumiko Ono completed her BA in Kyoto Seika University, MA in Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design and second MA with honors in Stieglitz State Academy of Arts and Design. She received scholarship from Hungarian, Czech, Israeli and Russian government and Ministry of Culture of Japan. Additionally, Ono has participated in residency programs world widely such as John Michael Kohler Arts Center, MASS MoCA , ISCP, Franconia Sculpture Park, BANFF Centre for Arts and Creativity, Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop, Taipei Artist Village, Shigaraki Ceramic Cultural Park, Gyeonggi Creation Center, CCI Fabrika, Meet Factory and many more. Ono was also awarded Franconia Sculpture Park Fellowship, TAVxMoCA Residency Program 2019, TOKAS Residency Program as well as grants from Yoshino Gypsum Art Foundation, Asahi Shimbun Foundation and was selected as a finalist of CAF award. Regarding her exhibition experience, she has done a number of exhibitions both nationally and internationally. She has shown her work in private and national galleries such as her solo show “Epitomes” at MoCA Taipei, “Organic Matter” at Diem Phung Thi Museum, “Peripeteia” at Triumph Gallery, “Utopia” at Slag Gallery, NYC, “Unbuilt” at ARTHAUS, Moscow, group show “Domani” at The National Art Center in Tokyo as well as a number of international art festivals and symposiums such as BIWAKO Biennale, Taehwa River Eco Art Festival, International Creative Laboratory Bashnya, International Art Symposium Elements Cuisine, Kyoto Sento Art Festival. Her work is in the collections such as John Michael Kohler Arts Center, Yelabuga State Art Museum and Imperial Porcelain Factory.
Utopia: This work consists of 196 abstract objects made out of porcelain. I created 196 different objects by cutting the same size cube, with the exact same weight by controlling the thickness of the objects while slip casting. 196 is the number of countries in the world, these objects are a metaphor for those countries. By having the 196 objects with the same weight and different shapes, the idea of the work was to create a world without any power balance.
Scenery is a scalable installation with multiple bowl-like objects cast with stones made of porcelain. The idea was to create ambiguous scenery so that the audience could use their imagination to decipher the work, be it a peddle in a puddle or a rock in the sea etc. It can be interpreted in many ways by the audience. In Japanese ceramic terms scenery means unique surface which is created by firing. Photo courtesy of artist.
Hisai Project is a reflection of the Hisai region as it previously was one of the major places for roof tiles. I created the original design of roof tiles inspired by ceramic figures of Shoki – a guardian spirit usually set on roof tops in Hisai. I then produced over 1000 tiles of my own design made from the local soil with the help of local volunteers. This project consists of three parts and each part has its own method of making aggregate with a different point of view. The theme of Hisai Project I is "town" and I created aggregate out of lines to resemble the audience’s streets and the point of view towards the town. Hisai Project II represents “city”, created from aggregate of a plane surface, this was emphasizing distance. Hisai Project III represents “world”, created from aggregate by stacking the roof tiles and change the view to be more distant so that all the surfaces become dots on the horizon. After this exhibition the roof tiles were given to the people of Hisai and they will remain a part of the city.
Fluctuation is an exploration of slip casting technique. By sticking slip-cast objects like Lego, I created different variations of objects from 9 different molds. The theme of the work is utopia, I’ve been creating utopian architectural work with non-architectural materials such as porcelain, paper and textile. By using slip-cast technique for forms and pit firing, I focused on creating a fusion of control and uncontrollable elements, both which are to express the fragility and fictionality of utopia.
Composition I is a series of large scalable artworks that I started during my residency program at Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop in 2023. The idea was to use the same material to create different shapes, starting from simple shapes and gradually increasing components so that the form becomes more complicated.
The Artist-in-Residence Program is sponsored, in part, by:
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