‘Glass that melts at high temperatures reminds me of the physical presence of human beings, such as internal organs and blood, And in the fragility and tension of brittle glass that hardens as it cools, I feel the vulnerability of the human spirit and the delicacy of the heart.’ says Komatsu.
Questions such as "Who am I? What is a human being?" arises during Komatsu's creation processes. She says: "I think I know myself best, but I wonder if I really do." and feels insecure and anxious when she realises that she doesn't know herself. However, as she works with glass, a material that is imbued with a sense of human-like duality, the contours of her own humanity gradually colors and darkens, and the glass is able to provide the artist a solid sense of her own ‘here and now’ presence. With this re-acknowledgement of her own existence, her anxiety diminishes, and Komatsu has come to believe that the purpose of her work is to create a blank space and world within the transparent quality of glass, to confirm her own existence by darkening the contours of humanity, and to search for answers to the questions she has about herself.
While her previous works have been characterised by the transparency of the glass, this exhibition will also feature glass works with white coloring. By using a completely different technique from the past, Komatsu has succeeded in expressing a soft, skin-like texture that could not be expressed using transparent glass alone. This new series of works further colours the human contours that Komatsu is constantly searching for.
Komatsu's pratice is an attempt to explore what it means to be human using the materialistic properties and color of glass. This exhibition will give viewers an opportunity to reconsider what it means to be human.
Miki Komatsu
Born in 1996, Niigata, Japan; graduated from Akita University of Arts, Creative Manufacturing Design. Currently erolled in the Master's course at Tokyo University of the Arts, Department of Crafts, Ceramic, Porcelain and Glass Art. Participated in the Urban Glass Workshop, Sayaka Suzuki class, 2017 (New York, USA), Attended workshops at the 31st Niijima International Glass Art Festival, Davide Salvadore class (Niijima Glass Art Centre, Tokyo, Japan) in 2018. Major group exhibitions include 'Glasses', Akita Araya Glass Studio, (Akita, Japan) in 2018, the 12th Joint Exhibition of Glass Educational Institutions ‘GEN’ (Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, Tokyo, Japan) in 2019, and the 'Young Artists’ Exhibition: Ceramic, Porcelain, Glass', Sokyo Gallery (Kyoto, Japan) in 2020.
