Michiyo YANAGIHARA

Born in a small village of Japan which had suffered the ravages of depopulation, Michiyo was raised by the elders in her local neighbourhood on behalf of her busy parents. They taught her the ways the world and how it works through old-world stories of monsters, and fabled tales of Japanese myths, ghosts and superstitions: 7 gods that exist in a single grain of rice; natural disasters as punishment for destroying nature; long-lived objects that become inhabited by spirits; with every unkind act, your existence wears away. It is these kind of stories that inspired a young child growing up, and continues to inspire today. ​ Michiyo's work is conceived and exists at the intersection of the two extremes of fantasy and reality, so its expression is incomplete and ambiguous. In contemplation, she has now understood this true meaning that defines her work, and drives her forward in life.