woah, gorgeous...

Such a lame post title, I know, but...that it what I thought when I saw the work of artist Ari Tabei.
A friend from grad school just forwarded me her info and I swooned-


When I saw her use of texture, shapes, layers, and garbage... I was enthralled. I particularly love her texture and the way her garments both flow and also clog- both protect and constrict. Very complex and satisfying as a visual experience.


Ari is a performance artist, originally from Japan, who creates home and womb like garments to explore ritual, healing, her ancestral culture, and transformation.



Ari states:

I make garments and bags to create nests that are like my own home, my own world. These function as cocoons for me, to heal and nourish myself so that I regain strength to survive when I emerge from them. Interacting with the garments and bags, I invent ritualistic play that revives my childhood experiences and interprets the influences of my culture. In my current series, I use different materials and processes to explore specific meanings. With these materials, I package my body to disconnect myself from reality, but also to tie myself to it.

My interest in rituals lies in my experience, as I grew up in Japan... I am attracted to the power and beauty of rituals such as tea ceremony, kimono-wearing, and traditional Japanese wrapping techniques. They are all based on the adoration of the beautiful in everyday existence. This aesthetic teaches us purity and harmony and the mystery of the nature of human beings...As I engage myself in the performance of ritual play, my intention is to reach for understanding and transformation. In this practice of conscious engagement, I seek a truth about self and a transformative process which reveals both desperation and hope.

Desperation and hope- A theme we can all relate to, and one I hold close to my heart.