10 Questions with Yota Yamaguchi

Yota Yamaguchi was born and still lives in Kobe City, Japan. Kobe is a cosmopolitan city with people from many different parts of the world, and Yota Yamaguchi has adopted an attitude of learning about their cultures when he creates his works. The styles of Yota Yamaguchi's works stem from his travels abroad after graduating from college, where he was inspired by the people and cultures of various origins. Yota Yamaguchi wants to express his thought that there is no superiority or inferiority among races and cultures, and that diversity brings colour to the world, which is why it is important to recognise differences and respect each other through the works he produced.

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ARTIST STATEMENT

Yota Yamaguchi paints his works by superimposing various landscapes of the world and the people who live there. There is an aspect of human costume that is influenced by the local climate, culture, and nature.

Hair ornaments, for example, are often modelled after local plants and animals. In other words, if we trace the origins of the costumes, we can catch a glimpse of the local lifestyle and stories. By superimposing landscapes and people in this way, it is possible to visualise latent information that is not directly visible to the eye, such as what kind of nature and stories existed in the land and how the costumes and facial expressions of the people in the work were created. Then, when Yota Yamaguchi finally puts all his works together in the same place, each one of them will play the role of a piece of the puzzle. They will compose a large work of art that represents the colours of the world in this age in which we live.

City of Peaceful Mothers, watercolor on paper, 37.5 x 48 cm, 2018 © Yota Yamaguchi

INTERVIEW

Let's start with your background. How did growing up in Kobe influence your artistic vision?

Kobe has a long history of cultural exchange with foreign countries, and as a result, there are many buildings and customs with foreign inspiration. Growing up there, I was raised surrounded by different cultures from childhood. Rather than teaching me to reject different cultures, this experience led me to have an interest in them, and became the foundation for my later overseas travels and for creating works modelled on cultures from around the world. Kobe taught me the beauty and wonder of different cultures.

What role did your travels abroad play in shaping your style and themes?

Encountering fascinating cultures and people at travel destinations is the real joy of travel, and the things they taught me expanded my expertise and made my life richer. At the same time, I also faced difficulty in adapting to local customs and communicating in a different language. As well, since I am a traveller, I am a foreigner in the eyes of the local people, and I experienced rare incidents of racial discrimination. But these experiences enabled me to reconsider my attitude and mindset when interacting with others and to reflect on the struggles of those living as minorities. Everything I encounter while travelling is a priceless learning experience. When I depict people from different cultures in my work, I draw from the happiness and difficulties I experienced at each destination, while holding respect for cultures and people of any background without discrimination. The theme of my work is to showcase the full appeal of a land and its people.

Breath of the Mekong, watercolor on paper, 39 x 35.5 cm, 2021 © Yota Yamaguchi

You often speak about diversity bringing colour to the world. How do you translate that idea into your paintings?

I think that prejudice against others and stereotypes stem from not understanding the other person. I think this is a conversation that applies to me as well; while thoroughly researching and understanding different cultures and others, I feel the distance between myself and them shrinks. I, too, am in the middle of this journey called "learning." I am deeply concerned about the current state of Japan and the world, where we are seeing signs of exclusion and a loss of respect for those with different backgrounds. Throughout art history, masterpieces have often been created when the influence of other cultures was respectfully incorporated; however, if the current exclusionary social climate persists, I fear it will put art on a path of irreversible decline. I have no interest in rallying nationalism with my work; conversely, it is precisely because in modern times we have the opportunity to coexist with a diversity of cultures, that I create works which emphasise the importance of diversity and strive to depict subjects without bias toward people of a specific region, culture, race or age.

Can you explain your process of superimposing landscapes and people in your works?

I start by finding common features in hair ornaments, garments and features of the land and cultural characteristics, and trace these back to their source materials and replace them, arranging surrounding buildings and nature to form the final work. When doing this, I try to keep the landscape and garmented people as close to reality as possible. I often employ One-Point Perspective when depicting landscapes, and through combining the straight line which converges toward the vanishing point with the lines used to express the flow of the subject's hair or the body form, and by additionally leaving blank space on paper, I can create an "optical illusion" effect, where the landscape and the figure's silhouette appear to float. This allows me to express both the origins of traditional garments and the stories woven by the people of that land simultaneously.

What draws you to focus on costume details, such as hair ornaments, as part of your storytelling?

It's because hair ornaments and traditional garments serve as mirrors that reflect each region's unique characteristics. For example, the maiko of Kyoto decorate their hair with a different ornament each month ,symbolising the season. These ornaments are primarily modelled after plants and animals native to Japan since ancient times. The Inuit transform the hides of animals locally caught for food into warm clothing by chewing and tanning them with their teeth. The above are just a few examples confirming how, in every region around the world, hair ornaments and traditional garments reflect local characteristics, be it the region's wildlife, culture, or the colors of the earth. By depicting the hair ornaments and garments in meticulous detail, I can clearly express each region's uniqueness as well as the similarities and differences with other regions.

How do you research or gather inspiration for the cultural and natural elements you depict?

As travelling overseas has become difficult for me for financial reasons, currently, I watch overseas travel programs every day without fail, and I get flashes of inspiration through watching images of local landscapes combined with people. With these flashes of inspiration as a base, I supplement the details by referencing literature describing the origins of costumes worldwide, knowledge I received from travel programs, and pictures of local townscapes. In doing so, I am also careful not to infringe on the copyright of the reference materials. In addition to the above research, I also visit people living in Kobe who have roots in the region I will be depicting in my work to learn about their culture. After completing the work, I confirm with them whether my creation does not deviate from the reality of their culture or violate their dignity, and if there are no problems, I present the work. It is an ongoing challenge for me to pay attention to the fact that I am not exploiting other cultures as a tool when I create my works.

You describe each work as a puzzle piece contributing to a larger whole. What would you like viewers to feel when they see the complete "puzzle"?

When observers view "Puzzle," I hope they will reexamine the appeal of their own culture. This is because when I depict other cultures, I may be discovering their appeal from a perspective different from that of the people who live there. At the same time, I would be happy if observers could notice the appeal of different cultures. If defining the individuality of each piece of the "Puzzle" as a "colour," the tone they weave would be a "gradation." This visualises the history of humanity, where cultures have developed through mutual influence rather than being confined by national borders. I hope that when standing before the complex hues of "Puzzle," which could never have been made with just a single colour, it makes the hearts of observers colourful. As well, depending on future social conditions and climate change, existing cultures, languages, landscapes and biodiversity may be lost, and the homogenisation of townscapes, fashion, and more may advance worldwide. If my work miraculously survives for future generations, I would be delighted if they could contemplate how our generation overflowed with abundant individuality.

Which cultures or places have influenced you most deeply so far, and why?

My use of watercolour as the work's medium and the use of Perspective and Chiaroscuro reflect influence from Western culture, and the method of leaving blank spaces on paper to establish the composition has origins in Eastern culture. As for the locations, every place I visited was wonderful, and of those, Europe had the biggest influence on me. In addition to talking with the local people, I also listened to immigrants, students, and tourists from around the world give details about their lifestyles. When visiting museums and standing before the pieces of painters I admire, I could feel their creative spirit and gain a deeper understanding of their artistic process, which provided me with invaluable knowledge and ideas for my own creations. This is not related to location or culture, but the fact that my grandfather helped fund my travels as encouragement remains a cherished memory that continues to propel my creative works.

Fully Blooming, My Love Heart, watercolor on paper, 41 x 31 cm, 2021 © Yota Yamaguchi

What projects or ideas are you currently developing in your studio?

At present, I have numerous ideas for pieces which combine landscapes and people, and in continuing this creation and idea generation, I intend to paint as many regions and people as possible. Additionally, I have ideas outside of this style for 3-dimensional satirical works, and I hope to eventually challenge installations showcasing these as well.

And lastly, where do you see yourself next? Any new project, travel, or series you are currently planning?

My ultimate life goal is to exhibit a collection of works I have created myself in one place. In doing so, I aim to create a space where people, regardless of race, gender, age and economic status, can easily interact. In this space, I hope to spark an interest in art among people who haven't had the opportunity to engage with it before, and at the same time, I want to pose the question to all those who attended the exhibition and to society: "Shouldn't cultural experiences like owning, appreciating, and creating art be open to people from all walks of life, not just a select few?" Looking ahead, my dream is to leave Japan and live and create work in various places around the world.

Artist’s Talk

Al-Tiba9 Interviews is a promotional platform for artists to articulate their vision and engage them with our diverse readership through a published art dialogue. The artists are interviewed by Mohamed Benhadj, the founder & curator of Al-Tiba9, to highlight their artistic careers and introduce them to the international contemporary art scene across our vast network of museums, galleries, art professionals, art dealers, collectors, and art lovers across the globe.

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