Pearls as Works of Art

Born in Hyogo, Japan, Nakakita graduated from the School of Fine Arts at the Tokyo University of the Arts in 2006. After completing her masters, she began working as an artist, based between her studios in Kobe and California.

A long-term fan of the Japanese jewellery brand, famed for its use of pearls, Nakakita first came across the house about a decade ago and has been a collector ever since. “About ten years ago I gave Tasaki’s black pearl Balance necklace as a wedding gift to an American friend who had been really kind and supportive while I was living in California,” she says. “I chose it because I wanted to give her something special. The necklace was perfect.”

“I expressed the pure and earnest love of The Little Mermaid by overlapping Tasaki’s delicate pearls with my interpretation of Andersen’s story. I added crystals and gold foils on canvas to complete both two- and three-dimensional works which give different expressions when captured from various angles. The wearable kimono Robe and Lily Crown invite viewers into my world in a more tangible way.” These pieces especially translate Nakakita’s methods of expression, combining a Japanese cultural outlook with that of a fantasy world.

A year in the making, Robe, the hero piece of the exhibition, was inspired by “the happiness of the mermaid while she was thinking of the prince”, which Hiroko describes as a “bubble”. “I depicted the numerable bubbles in the sea with pearls. The robe was sewn by a craftsman in Kyoto. The printed family crests are original, combined with illustrations of weeping cherry blossom. I poured my feelings into the robe.”

The uplifting, pink Glorious Future is made using acrylic, crystal, gold leaf, pearl, and oil on canvas, while the moodier Starry Night mixes pearls with silver leaf, as well as oil on canvas. The Flurry of Sakura Petals, Sweet Tears, and Grandmother are all just as mesmerising. Based on the theme of human emotions, Nakakita says she will continue to use motifs like flowers, birds, and chandeliers in her work. “They are splendid yet solitary. They create works reflective of my own feelings.”

SOURCE: https://luxurylondon.co.uk/culture/art/hiroko-nakakita-artist-interview-tasaki/