Review: “Artist Kumi Yamashita’s Punctilious Portraits Are Worth Traveling For”
September 26, 2024
THE OBSERVER
Review by Stephen Wozniak
With light, shadow, fabric and string, the artist weaves exquisite images of people, on view now at Finn Gallery in Greenwich.
Kumi Yamashita’s new solo exhibition at the Flinn Gallery curated by Leslee Aschshowcases exquisite portraits, but hers are not traditional or easy interpretations of human subjects. There are the entrancing features that capture our attention. However, Yamashita is here to show us a larger picture, a way to connect the countenance with the collective, the parts to the whole. To do this, the artist employs unusual materials in her work, casting light to make shadowy forms from found objects or networking a single thread along hundreds of nail posts to make a facial matrix. In some ways, her art is as much about the final arrangements we see as the resources that make them.
0-9, one work on display from the artist’s “Light & Shadow series,” is made from a spartan scattering of white wooden numerals, creating a sense of sculptural relief. In no discernable order, machine-carved 8s, 3s, 1s, 2s and so on fill the wall in disarray. They look like a handful of dice rolled out by a gambler, exploding from right to left. Following that trajectory is a blast of light from a single source, which illuminates a lucky 7, then trips along all the other numerals until, unexpectedly, a distinct profile of a young boy emerges in a thick collection of shadows.
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Kumi Yamashita, Warp and Weft (Mother No. 2), 2013; fabric with threads removed, 15” x 13”. Photo by Paul Takeuchi
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VIDEO: Center Stage with Pamela Kuhn with guests, Leslee Asch and Kumi Yamashita
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Art New England: The Elusive Art of Kumi Yamashita at Flinn
ART NEW ENGLAND
September/October 2024
Flinn Gallery, Greenwich, CT • flinngallery.com • Through November 6, 2024
Opening the Flinn Gallery’s 2024–25 season, The Elusive Art of Kumi Yamashita offers a glimpse into the contemplative vision of Yamashita, whose work explores her fascination with the human form and human condition. She’s been described as a “conceptual humanist,” and owns it: “I think that might be one of the best descriptions of my work and subject matter,” she says. The process of bringing these ideas to fruition is a painstaking one, although the work comes to Yamashita “fully formed.” Then, she says, “I see my job as attempting to faithfully transfer that vision into the physical world.” Exhibition viewers can expect to see subtly provocative works that embody this approach.
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Pictured: Warp & Weft (Mother No. 2), 2013, fabric with threads removed,15 x 13″. Photo: Paul Takeuchi.
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Art Spiel: The Elusive Art of Kumi Yamashita at Flinn
ARTSPIEL
September 12, 2024
The Flinn Gallery’s 2024-25 season kicks off on September 19 with the solo exhibition The Elusive Art of Kumi Yamashita, curated by Leslee Asch. Situated on the second floor of the Greenwich Library, the Flinn Gallery is known for its commitment to high-quality contemporary art, offering a space for both emerging and established artists. The Flinn Gallery’s 2024-25 season opens on September 19 with the solo show The Elusive Art of Kumi Yamashita, curated by Leslee Asch.
Kumi Yamashita, a Japanese-born artist, creates ‘analog’ magic in a digital age. Her work is entirely manual, with no use of computer software. She meticulously arranges everyday materials, illuminating them with a single light source until they cast the perfect silhouette.