Kyoko Imazu’s intricate papercuts show worlds in miniature. Trees and plants drill down to complex root systems, with animals and human figures occasionally dangling from them. Some of these works are only 15 centimetres tall, yet their detail is meticulous.
The Melbourne-based artist became fascinated by the inner life of native plants after immersing herself in community gardening. “I love paying attention to those little lives… not just plants but even the rocks or what people might not consider to be significant,” she says. “The cycle of life, death and regeneration tells a lot of universal stories.”
Papercutting has long been part of Imazu’s practice, but this is the artist’s first exhibition based solely on the form. An avid reader of poetry, she sees a symmetry in gardening and this part of her practice. “Looking after the plants was almost like reading a piece of poetry,” she says. “I get to hold that moment and try to imagine what the plants might experience or actually see: insects coming in, humans walking past.”
The artist’s lifelong interest in yokai—the supernatural figures of Japanese folklore—also informs these works, which play with light and shadow. “I’ve always loved drawing them—some are quite scary, some are quite funny,” she says. “Feeling the presence of something or someone in wind, thunder or shadows… I include those little things that are invisible to our eyes, that we can only feel.”
Imazu’s detailed design process leads to the peaceful final stretch before each papercut is complete. “Once everything is set, cutting for me is like a meditation,” she says. “I love doing it, because I can just listen to podcasts or music and have no mind.”
Kyoko Imazu
Australian Galleries
22 October—9 November
This article was originally published in the September/October 2024 print issue of Art Guide Australia.
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