Leiko Ikemura
White Figure
1997
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Leiko Ikemura is a young Japanese-born artist who lives in
Germany. In the past several years she has participated in a
number of New York group shows, presenting her curious
ceramic figures that seem like relics from a lost civilization. In
this, her first one-person show in the U.S., she presented a
selection of ceramic sculptures as well as two small oil
paintings on burlap.
While the paintings are not as effective as the sculptures, they
give a clear indication of Ikemura's subject matter. Most of the
ceramic sculptures are studies of children. Each is a kind of
hollow portrait bust, but they have an uncanny aspect due to
the extreme distortion of faces, heads and bodies. White
Figure, a white-glazed bust, clearly reads as human. It looks
like a Nok head from ancient Nigeria. But other figures seem to
metamorphose into fantastic creatures. In Cauliflower, a face
suggests the lumpy vegetable, while green leaves grow out of
the top the head. Some of the figures are decapitated. One of
them holds its head in its arms, while another holds a little blue
cat.
Ikemura's work is full of surprises. Her subtle modulations of
textures, and simple forms are mesmerizing.
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