miya ando in conversation
with senior curator laurie ann farrell
Tell us a little about your work?
My work explores themes of perception and examines one’s relationship to time. I often reference historic literary texts and employ elemental materials. My main focus is investigating the idea that the fundamental nature of reality is that all constituent forms that make up the universe are temporary; a concept found in Buddhism as well as quantum physics.
Has your bi-coastal living changed your practice?
I spend most of my time in NYC. Going to California hasn't impacted my practice significantly. One thing that has changed is the California light (in particular NorCal light) is very distinctive and has worked its way into the paintings.
What type of advice would you offer young artists in the early stages of their careers?
I think everyone has their own path and manner of working. For me, discipline and focus have always been most important. I would encourage young artists to engage daily in their art practice, even if it is thinking about the work. Art is thinking: artworks are visual representations of thinking and so a continuum of thought is important.
What are you currently working on, have you been making work during the shelter in place?
I've been walking to my studio in NYC, it's been difficult to find some of my usual materials but I had linen and indigo in the studio and so I'm working with that. I'm recording the skies since our lockdown and making a calendar of meteor showers...meteors are ephemeral even if they might last 1000 years or more. I'm looking to natural phenomena that is constant, it's comforting during this time.
Do you think the pandemic will change your practice? If so, how?
It has slowed things down quite a bit, which may be a good thing. Equanimity has always been of utmost importance to me and this pandemic has reaffirmed that.
72 Ko (Seasons), 72 paintings (pigment and urethane on aluminum) to represent the ancient calendar of Japan which had 72 seasons in the year. A reflection on various ways to record time.
N. Baker/Asia Society Texas
This installation is from my current exhibition "Form is Emptiness, Emptiness is Form" at Asia Society Texas on view through June 2020. I recreated the karesansui (dry rock garden) Ryōanji and replaced the rocks with charred wood and silver nitrate.
Nick Knight/Socrates Sculpture Park
I was commissioned by The Socrates Sculpture park last year to create this installation for their "Chronos Cosmos" exhibition. The Japanese word 'ginga' mean "the silver river or Milky Way galaxy) and inspired this piece.
Kerry McLaney
I was commissioned in 2018 by Faena Art, Miami Beach, Florida to create this commission. The title 'Sora' is the Japanese word for 'sky' but has an alternate meaning of 'emptiness or void'. The landmark Versailles hotel was clad in images of sunset and sunrise, this work was an exercise in dematerialization.
about miya ando
Miya Ando’s work has been the subject of recent solo exhibitions internationally at leading institutions including The Asia Society Texas, Houston, The Noguchi Museum, Long Island City, New York, SCAD Museum of Art (Savannah College of Art and Design), Georgia; The Nassau County Museum of Art, Roslyn, New York; and American University Museum, Washington DC. Her work has also been included in group exhibitions at including: Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas; Los Angeles County Museum of Art, California; Haus Der Kunst, Munich, Germany; The Bronx Museum of Arts, New York; and Queens Museum, Corona, New York. Her work is included in the public collections of Los Angeles County Museum of Art, California; The Nassau County Museum of Art, Roslyn, New York; Corning Museum of Glass, New York; and Detroit Institute of Arts, Michigan; as well as in numerous private collections. Ando has been the recipient of several grants and awards including the Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant. She exhibited her work in the group exhibition, Frontiers Reimagined, during the 56th Venice Biennale, Italy, 2015.