A Modest Scream _ The MassTokyo, JAPAN 21.Nov – 27.Dec 2020

• Statement

  While I was contemplating and working on this exhibition, I seemed to be wrapped in white gauze. Since the Spring of 2020 the world has seen itself shut down. It was also an unpleasant time for me personally as I had an intestinal tumour removed after being in poor physical health since the year before.

  Recollections.
  I contacted a friend in Europe to request an ID photo to use for a piece, as well as to check on their safety.At the end of the reply to that email was a note.

  You and I are sure to be okay. Stay safe.

  The quiet courage that the words gave me.
  The relief I felt thinking of my friend spending their days a little more modestly in a distant land.

  People are shaped by recalling the parts that are no longer visible, people caress by thinking of the parts that cannot be touched. By making a promise I secure the coming future, and by believing, I take responsibility for my present self. The world continues to exist unchanged even when I cannot see it, and that person in the distance is still alive and well. I've come to learn that we live our days in stability by believing that we are and will continue to be the parts we can't perceive from the here and now.

  I, others, pain (as close to pleasure as possible) body, healing

  These are the words I wrote in my notebook when this exhibition was decided. I don't want these phrases to lead the viewer into a predetermined view of the works, however, as the word ‘healing’ implies, my thoughts all revolved around the idea of hope. While feeling the body’s recovery, feeling the intensity that the work of healing holds and painting each picture, I feel as if I have touched something that carefully cherishes the fragile folds and hollows of existence.

  A faint, delicate light, that overflows.
  Its brilliance and texture a testament to the fact that it is alive
  Drawing; the body’s blessing
  Something that should never be let go until the end.

  My hope is that the people who encounter this exhibition will be able to feel ‘a modest scream’ from within their own lives or from the works themselves.