Please can you give me an introduction to yourself.

I'm a Japanese artist based in London. I was born in Japan and came to the UK in 2005. I graduated from Central Saint Martins in 2009. After that I learned songwriting. Basically, I was looking for ways to express myself as I love to do so in many ways. Art is my passion and currently I work in collage.

How has your Japanese background influenced your work?

Japan is a country of ’Wa’ culture which means togetherness, harmony and peace. At its heart are the values of sympathy and sensitivity to others, sometimes individuality isn't as important as harmony, melting into a whole like nature. It may be because most have the same cultural background. Here in London it is multicultural so the situation is totally different to Japan. Diversity is remarkable and individuality and respect for differences are important here. The variety is so beautiful and seeing the difference educates me a lot. I've got a new way of seeing human beings and I'm fascinated by the switching between two different ideas; togetherness and differences. Making harmony but yet respecting the beauty of differences. My artwork reflects these two aspects of beings, which I've learnt through my experience.

You use mixed media to create your work, how do you use this to convey messages to the viewer?

Since I was child, I have loved mixing and composing different qualities of things. Mixed media is a natural expression and pure joy of creation. Materials stimulate my emotions, the sense of touching is a fundamental joy. I believe texture gives the audience more information about the visuals and creates a deeper emotional experience for them. I want to make artwork as sensuous learning journeys through physical practice within joy, and want to share this with the audience. But also materials reflect the media of an era. A magazine I use for collage is a material, which is not the newest technology but modern and familiar in our society. So It could be accessible and approachable for viewers as well as myself.

Describe your creative process; from start to finish of one of your pieces. Where do you find your Inspiration?

'Man in Blue' was a challenging piece for me. I experimented with new materials adding extra dimension and texture to it. To begin, I did a rough drawing on the canvas. This drawing consisted of several parts of faces, onto which I mounted chunks of foil to make a bumpy surface. Then, I covered it with paper mache which I mixed with paper, powder and glue. This was a physically tougher process than I imagined, and making humans with my hands reminded me of giving birth; such a metaphorical but interesting experience for me. For colour, I decided to use only primary colours because I wanted to convey the primitive, primitive feeling of its creation. First thought was to paint the whole thing blue. I didn't know what it meant but later this became a title. This process made me recognise more of a single person rather than a collective of random faces. However, I wanted to keep the concept of diversity and difference. I alternately worked on different parts, the whole image emerging into harmony of the elements from which that one persona stood out.

At the heart of your work is the representation of human identity, what do you find interesting about human identity? Why is this subject important to you?

After I left my home country, I felt like I lost my language and my identity, my authentic question raised 'What is me?' and ' What is a human being?' -That's the main reason why my subject is human identity. But this is a fundamental question for humanity. This is a common theme that every human being has throughout their life. It is a universal subject no matter what background or culture we have, could be a common language or question we discuss. This commonality allows us to discuss and debate on peaceful manner, and I like that. Maybe my Japaneseness is coming out.

Who is your favourite artist and why? Do they have an influence on your work?

I'm greatly inspired by Picasso and Bacon, by the way they see and capture the essence of human beings. Picasso captured the different views. Bacon captured the movement. Their works make me a question "how do I see human beings?". I'm trying to capture human nature by deconstructing and reconstructing different identities.

What has been your greatest achievement so far as an artist?

Exhibiting at The Other Art Fair this month was my biggest achievement so far. This was the starting point of my long journey but the opportunity gave me a chance to experiment with new sizes and new mediums, such as; paper mache and oil paint. It's exciting to continue exploring materials and studying my subject.

Why do you think art is important in society?

I think art allows us to ask and answer a question about humanity and society. Some artists observe and study themselves, others study our society, but all relate to humanity. This human activity is important for us to understand ourselves and also leads to the evolution and growth of humanity.

https://www.ayaudagawa.com