A completed work of Hirono Town Artist in Residence 2025
Title: a thousand years Artist: Minami Kinto Year: 2025 Medium: Felt, fleece, Yarn, Old cloth, Ripped yarn (ripped cloth), Banana leaves from Hirono Town, Beads, Braid, Acrylic paint, Wood, Wire Public Collection of Hirono Town
Lady Take in the legend of “The Pinetree of the Sunrise in Mutsu” is sometimes portrayed as a servant. But when I first visited Hirono Town, Mr. Suzuki, the chairman of the tourist association, said some powerful words to me: “Take must have been an intelligent and sophisticated woman, as she was entrusted with educating the lord’s children.” Not just in this legend, but all the countless nameless women who appear in old tales as wet nurses and servants were intelligent and lived their lives with pride in their work. I wondered if it was possible to create a work that praised the way such women lived. I put this thought into my work, “a thousand years.” The title of the work refers to the years of the nameless servants and wet nurses who lived during the thousand years from the Heian period, when the legend of “The Pinetree of the Sunrise in Mutsu” was born to the present day.
KATO Ai (AI☆MADONNA) Born in Tokyo in 1984, Kato Ai graduated from AIDA Makoto’s Barabara Art Class in 2014 at Bigakko Art School, and has been performing live paintings as “AI ☆MADONNA” since 2007. Her activity as an artist has spanned wide range of field, not only exhibiting her works, but also collaborating with musicians, designing costumes for Japanese idols, and just last year publishing her very first manga called “HAKUA” (Publisher: Stoke, Inc.).
そしてアートフェア二日目！
This Afternoon, AIR members join the lecture.Hatano’s room.
Teacher: Wataru Hatano Alongside paper making and craftworks, Wataru designs and create spaces as well as showcasing his artworks globally to demonstrate the aesthetics of washi.
わっしょいわっしょい頑張って積み込みました！ 役場のYさんは、室内での印象と全然違って、体動かすの大得意感が出ていて、驚きました。 広野はスポーツのまちでもあるんですね〜〜 🚚 Wasshooooi! Wasshooooi! 💪 Surprised by the energetic side of the town office staff today! Mr. Y was completely different from his indoor persona – totally into physical work and loving every moment. Looks like Hirono is totally a sports town!
📣 Public Art Creation Event! 📣 Date: January 25th Time: 3 PM – 5 PM Location: Hirono Terrace
Join me for an open studio session where I’ll be creating preliminary sketches.
🧵 Clothing Donation Request 🧵 I’m collecting vintage/second-hand clothing. Important: Please hand donations DIRECTLY to me. Do NOT drop them off at shops or municipal offices.
