Blog — nanami cowdroy art RSS

Celebrating Clean Air and Contemporary Art! Special Release of my "Mingei Memory' Art-Air purifiers with the award winning design company, Rabbit Air. www.rabbitair.com

Very excited and honoured to be part of RISE EXHIBITION. An exhibition to benefit those impacted by the Australian bushfires. The exhibition is taking place at The Carriage Works, Sydney. 11th - 20th March 2020.  An epic line-up of local and international Artists are all creating works for an online silent auction - using charcoal collected from the burnt trees.The concept behind my piece "Smoking Souls" reflects the spirits of the lost wildlife (kangaroo’s) fleeing the fires in the form of smoke. The burnt corner of my canvas symbolises the fires, the thick / thin charcoal strokes and splatters symbolising the charred trees and ash filled winds carrying their souls away. "Smoking Souls" is a mixed media composition using charcoal, Japanese Ink (black and...

New piece Ive been working on references many of the antique, hand-made toys my mother collected and brought with her to Australia from Japan. "Mingei" is the Japanese word for 'Folk Toy', hand-crafted art. Lately, Ive been missing my family in Japan. It's been 8 years since I've been back to see them, so I really wanted to make a piece which was playful and embraced  many of the vintage toys and Shinto charms mum collected from different prefectures around Japan. She has kept them since my childhood and continues to display them lovingly around our house. Daruma dolls, Kokeshi dolls, Inu-Hariko (Papier-mache Puppy Doll), Kendama, Miharu-Goma (horse doll) etc.  I think it's time for a long overdue HARRO! with my family in Tokyo ;) 

I just completed my newest piece on canvas (1000 x 1000mm) which I've titled 'Onna-Bugeisha' which translated from Japanese means 'Female Warrior' This piece is my interpretation of Neoclassicism - playing with traditional Japanese Ukiyo-E subjects and styles, combined with contemporary objects, elements and themes. Being lucky enough to be born and raised in a free country like Australia, where the concept of 'Female Empowerment' being the cultural norm...  this quite often led to tensions and struggles at times when I was trying to relate to my okaasan (mother) and her old school, traditional Japanese views and behavioural expectations of how I ( ie, girl / woman / female) should 'be' whilst growing up.I was often challenged and questioned over how I should -or- should not present myself...

My Tsuru ‘Peace Pins’ are finally ready! Each enamel pin is custom made, and comes on an artist signed, premium cardboard backing. It comes in 2 styles - Black and White -and- Black and Gold.  For every Peace Pin sold, 10% of the proceeds will be donated to the Australian Red Cross to help support their everyday humanitarian work locally, and internationally.   Click here to Order a Tsuru Peace Pin now :)