In an exhibit inspired by antique kimonos, husband and wife artists Suzanne Northcott and David Kimura are “sharing the inspiration” by translating two very different experiences with kimonos into beautiful art.
Inside Stories, running April 26 to May 15 at the Fort Gallery, is their second show together and blends installation pieces of silk cocoons and kimonos by Northcott, with whimsy photography of floating silk by Kimura.
“It’s about the transformation of materials, how silk comes from somewhere and becomes some other thing,” Northcott said.
“Everything will be hanging from the ceiling, so it will be a floating world of cocoons and kimonos and materials where you can see the genesis of the ideas.”
Some of the hanging silk textiles use a repeating image of snowberries that Northcott painted over one year ago, while others are transparent white and have been shredded and mended to show that “things are precious, but things don’t last,” she said.
“It zeros-in in a way that a painting can’t. We think of objects in a solid way, and ourselves in a solid way — and I don’t think of things that way. I think of things being always on their way, things are always in process. We are always changing and things are not solid.
“And all of the things (in the exhibit) were made out of the materials that came before — there aren’t any new molecules. So everything is always in process. And I can show that a little bit more (through an installation), especially in the one that’s being shredded and mended. It shows that we try to keep things from deteriorating, but at the same time, things are on their way.”
Northcott also touches on issues of sustainability and recycling. Clothing is bought and discarded at an alarming rate, but can be kept in circulation longer if they are mended and cared for, she said.
“I think that silk is a real process material. You can watch the silkworms make their cocoons. And it has to be done that way, you have to unfurl those cocoons. It’s a process material, and it tends not to be as disposable. People take care of things made out of silk.”
Northcott’s inspiration comes from an antique black kimono that was gifted to her 30 years ago by a woman with an art and antique shop in Chilliwack. Northcott could not afford the garment at the time, so the owner agreed to trade it for a custom portrait.
“I have a love affair with this old, old kimono that seems like the ideal garment to me,” Northcott said.
“There’s a heaviness to the material that’s ‘drapey’ and beautiful. The outside is black and the lining is surprising, the lining has colour. And that to me is amazing.”
Kimura has also captured this material through his photographs printed on aluminum. In them, the translucent white silk appears to float through the sky.
His inspiration stems from his Japanese roots and an heirloom kimono his mother had received from her mother. His sister borrowed the kimono to use in a theatre production of The Teahouse of August Moon, and it was stolen — they never saw it again.
“It evokes some images with the idea of something lost and images with a ghost-like feeling animated by the wind,” he said.
“Even though I don’t suggest it, it is still animated in my mind. So that’s partially my intent of the metaphor.”
The other part of Kimura’s inspiration comes from an experience he had as a child growing up in Alaska. His family would often go fishing at 4 a.m. in Resurrection Bay, an area surrounded by huge mountains, tall glaciers, and dense forest that was always draped in fog and low clouds.
“While patrolling in these fishing boats, the motor (would be) in low speed,” he explained.
“And one time when I went out, because I was sleepy and this motor had a kind of drone, I had a very vivid dream-like hallucination of a kimono-clad woman drifting through the tree tops and heard my name called. So I wrote a poem on that.
“It’s always been an evocative image for me.”
Both Northcott and Kimura will be sharing insights on their work at the Fort Gallery’s First Thursday event, held May 5 from 7 to 9 p.m. The free evening will also feature Langley jazz singer Ashley Waite-Womack.
The opening reception for the show takes place this Friday, April 29, from 7-9 p.m. and will also be held at the Gallery, located at 9048 Glover Rd.
For more information on Inside Stories, and other exhibitions by the Fort Gallery, visit www.fortgallery.ca. Regular gallery hours are Wednesday to Sunday, noon to 5 p.m.
