Aoyama Satoru

Although he is Japanese by birth, he does not view his art strictly as ‘Japanese’, but rather operating in dialogue with other global trends and the history of art. He says; ‘when I talk with Jim Lambie, I don’t talk to him as a Japanese artist talking to a Scottish artist, but as two artists operating internationally’. Satoru’s practice blurs the distinction between different media as he uses photographs as a base foundation and then embroiders over the image. He believes the black of thread is stronger than the black pigment of paint and that his use of embroidery enables him to pursue that depth of blackness. He frequently makes use of traditional subject matter found in classical oil paintings. The process of making is important for Satoru and he hopes that in viewing his work, people will appreciate the embroidery and ultimately question the relationship between the images presented and the process of making.