Tomoko Iki was taken with the desire to do photography and dance at the same time in her life. For her, these are two sides of the same creative force, and they mutually inform one another. Her dance influences her...
Read MoreTomoko Iki was taken with the desire to do photography and dance at the same time in her life. For her, these are two sides of the same creative force, and they mutually inform one another. Her dance influences her photography. Through dance she explores her own spirit. It is a meditation and ritual in which she offers herself to nature. Dance has revealed to her a deep sense of her own femininity as well as the ancient human desire to connect with the divine. With her photographs, she tries to convey this universal desire and how movement through dance moves us forward toward truth.
1984 Born in Japan2007 Graduated from Department of Human Environment Design, School of Life Studies, Sugiyama Jogakuen University.2015 Activities based in New York.
Exhibition & Award
2018 solo exhibition “DANCE”held at Lights Gallery in Japan.2018 exhibited at the group exhibition “Niu”at Lights Gallery in Japan.2017 exhibited at the group exhibition “tohubohu” held at Kogane4422 in Japan.2017 solo exhibition “NAGI” held at CRS in New York. 2016 received the KAWABA NEW NATURE PHOTO AWARD in the category of Art in Nature.2013, solo exhibition “mother” held at Rhythm Warp Gallery in Japan. 2011, exhibited at the group exhibition “foto-n 2nd exhibition”at X Gallery at the Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art in Japan.2010, solo exhibition “stile brau” held at the Valentine Drive in Japan.2007, exhibited at the group exhibition “Kodo (Pulse)” at the Plastic Factory in Japan.
Artist StatementOnce, when I was dancing in the forest, I had an epiphany: when I dance in nature, nature also dances with me.I could feel the rhythm and pulse of my surroundings and how it connected to my own physical self.So, I started to capture this theme. I became both a dancer and a photographer at the same time. These mediums have always informed one another.When I dance, I can improvise an expression of the emotions that I feel, my own femininity and my spirit, just as they are.No ancient tribe was without their own sense of dance. There is a universal, fundamental desire for it.I am interested in why humans dance, how humans connect nature to others, and why dancing in nature is so liberating. My pieces are kinetic, intricate, and they convey minute details.The photos are fundamentally abstract, but embody organic patterns.Through the use of layered nature photography, I try to convey how movement through dance brings us forward toward truth.
