Swimming with elephants

Based on the concept of “white poetry,” I created a special work that functions both as a bookend and as a box-shaped lamp.

A pure white world spread out in a paperbook-sized wooden box.

doors, windows, sofas, lamps, bicycles, animals, broken sailboats, letterpress printers, countless small books made of paper --

Delicate shapes born from familiar materials such as wood, paper, and metal wire show a serene beauty of shadows during the day and a warm expression of light at night.

A “white poem” is a poem spelled in form rather than words.

light and shade. Opposites harmonize quietly in a small box, bringing peace and imagination to the viewer.

When I was a child who loved reading books, the experience of stories emerging from flat words is the origin of this formative world.

An expression born from trial and error, through self-taught learning of various techniques.

When arranged on a bookshelf, books spelled out in words and poems spelled out in form harmonize beautifully.

In a relationship where they need and support each other, each box is an independent short story, and as a whole, they are connected by a single worldview called “white poetry.”

An encounter with a story opened a door.

When I came into contact with the world spun with quiet narration, the feeling that I had been chasing colors quietly unraveled,

It made me want to go back to the realm of white and shadow before it became a word.

A world where you breathe in a small, limited space rather than an expanse.

A world where voices don't make strong claims, but they certainly reach the depths of the heart.

As I snuggled up to it, my hands naturally headed into the “white,” and I began to listen closely to slight fluctuations in shape and gentle shading of shadows.

The elephant in this work is neither a symbol of strength nor a symbol of bravery.

It's like a form of heart that doesn't stop even in the midst of hesitation, but still breathes quietly.

It's like swimming in a large ocean, yet it's not rushing anywhere; it's just a sign of will that is definitely moving forward.

Memories of the light of invisible words that gently support your back when you get lost, when you stop, even if that's OK, dwell quietly dwell in the back of this elephant.

Close to night, when the light is turned on, the small shadow of an elephant stands up softly, and the anxiety and impatience that had been shaking deep in my heart begins to breathe just a little quietly.

It's not a light to accomplish something, but a small light to softly say, “You can stay here as it is now.”

[Changing Scenery]

You can switch the impression of the light with the two switches on the back.

Enjoy a viewing experience where different shadows are created during the day and night, and the depth of the story changes.

Exhibition scenery

[About wooden boxes]

The wooden box for this work is made using the traditional Japanese technique “sashimono (sashimono).”

It is a technique of precision processing and combining wood without using nails at all, and the irregularities mesh perfectly, creating a beautiful and strong box.

This “box that can be assembled quietly” itself is also an important element that supports the world of the work.

A video summarizing the process of assembling a wooden box with finger objects, the process of the small world being shaped, exhibition scenery, and the movement of light during lighting has been shown on YouTube (@koki_ota).

[About materials]

The work “White Poetry” is composed mainly of materials that are familiar yet breathe over time.

Wood, paper, metal, glass, and lights.

None of them are chosen to make strong claims, but to quietly support “being.”

■ wood

The wooden box and base, which serve as the foundation of the work, are made of wood that takes durability and stability into consideration.

By cutting out, polishing, and softening the corners of the surface, it plays a role as a “vessel” that envelops the quiet inner world.

The organic material called wood contains slight stretching and a sense of texture, and supports the breathing of the work as a “living frame” that is not inorganic.

■ paper

Most of the white three-dimensional objects are shaped by layering, scraping, and scraping off paper.

Paper is a material that is light and brittle, yet has density and presence as it continues to overlap.

In order to give shape to the “sign before it becomes a word,” we create while checking the texture of the paper, the density of the fibers, and even the way light is absorbed one by one.

In daytime light, fine shadows float in the whiteness, and in nighttime light, they change to soft outlines.

■ metal wire

Metal wire is used for detailed structures and fine modeling.

While it works as a framework for achieving both lightness and strength, it also has the role of maintaining “tranquility of existence” from the other side as an invisible internal support.

We treat it as a material that blends in with the shadows of shapes without asserting more than necessary.

■ Glass domes and acrylic windows

Some works are covered by glass domes and transparent plates.

This is protection to protect the interior, and at the same time, it also has the meaning of “sealing a quiet world as a single story.”

The transparent membrane as a boundary with the outside world accentuates the serenity of the interior.

■ Light (LED/battery specification)

Depending on the work, soft lighting is incorporated into the interior.

It's not a strong light, and it's a faint light that doesn't break shadows.

On the premise that they will be close to quiet times at night, LEDs with low heat generation are used, and gentle, warm colors are selected.

It is basically battery operated, and is designed so that it can be handled without difficulty in a living space.

■ How to think about material selection

・Materials that are familiar yet can contain a story

・A texture that can accept fluctuations in light and shadow

・Realistic durability to stay close to for a long time

・ “Not glamorous, but something that supports serenity”

Each material exists not as a decoration, but as a “framework that supports meaning.”

I would like the completed work not to be closed as one thing, but to be an entity that continues to quietly breathe in the continuation according to the viewer's memories and senses.

[About production locations]

This is a record of how the new studio in Hyogo took shape.

It records how little by little the light and air of the place where the work is created is being prepared along with the quiet flow of time.

On my website, in addition to being able to view the works currently being released through the online store, you can also view all of my previous productions and past works.

The online store offers some works at prices that are slightly more affordable than the ones on display.

I would be happy if you could relax and enjoy the world of the work.

https://koki-art.jp