Join Te Tuhi for an exclusive talk by Japanese artist Ami Yoshida, who is visiting Tāmaki Makaurau for an exhibition, RICE, and a series of workshops at Ūkaipō.
The talk will be followed by a public tour of Te Ana o Hine with artist Ngaroma Riley.
Everyone is welcome to join both the talk and the tour, no RSVP required. Light refreshment will be provided.
About Ami Yoshida
Ami Yoshida (吉田愛美) is a sculptor, who works from her studio in Shiogama City, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. She has exhibited sculptures and drawings over the past decade, using camphor wood as her main medium. Yoshida focusses on themes from life, memories, and existence through the means of the human body.
While studying at the Tohoku University of Art and Design (TUAD) in neighboring Yamagata Prefecture, she held a solo exhibition at the Shiogama Sugimura Jun Museum of Art, on the theme of prayer in 2016.
Following the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, Yoshida's perspective of the human body evolved. Rather than limiting herself to an idealised image of the human body, she carefully examines the "living beauty" of each individual, attempting to extract in three-dimensional form the "expression of life" that cannot be fully conveyed through photography alone. She became inspired by the realisation that the body is fragile and can easily break. Since then, her themes have focused on the instability of the body and its lingering emotions and memories.
Since 2023, she has been sharing her skills and experience as a part-time lecturer at TUAD to future generations of sculptors.
About Te Ana o Hine
Te Ana o Hine at Te Tuhi is a wāhine-led carving space born from the need to create a safe and supportive environment for wāhine taketake and others who encounter barriers in the carving world.
Literally translated as "the cave of Hine", the studio space draws on the mana of all atua hine, offering an āhuru mōwai (sanctuary) for the artists who work within. Te Ana o Hine could also be read as the entrance to the whare tangata, or the house of humanity, recognising wāhine Māori for their ability to create life and nurture future generations.
→ Read more about Te Ana o Hine.