All images © Yuko Nishikawa, shared with permission
For the last two years, Yuko Nishikawa (previously) has prioritized traveling. Chasing the unbridled inspiration that new environments bring to her practice, the Brooklyn-based artist has found herself in Japan, participating in residency programs and appreciating time on her own. Using local materials, crossing paths with people, and immersing herself in different landscapes has become the starting point for much of her recent work.
Nishikawa’s previous body of work incorporates more bulbous vessels, whereas the artist’s newest solo exhibition, Mossy Mossy, returns to the classic paper pod mobiles she’s known for and evokes a physical reflection of her musings from Hokuto-shi. Located in Yamanashi Prefecture, the city is replete with moss sprawling atop rocks, alongside waterfalls, and covering buildings. This simple plant “spreads from the center to the periphery and grows and increases,” she says. Methodically balanced by weight and connected by wire, Nishikawa suspends a plethora of green pods uniquely shaped from paper pulp.
Composed of more than 30 sculptures, all works in Mossy Mossy represent a system of growth that evokes the plants’ rambling qualities and always stem from a single, fixed line hanging from the ceiling. Delicate, dangling elements invite each mobile to respond to the movement of viewers and airflow. “Rather than looking at it from one point, the shape changes when you move your body to see and experience it from all directions,” she explains.
Mossy Mossy is on view now at Gasbon Metabolism until May 27, and Nishikawa is also preparing for an exhibition and lecture in October 2024 at Pollock Gallery. Follow on Instagram for updates, and see her website for more work.
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