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Haruko Okano, Arboretum Arboressence, 2004, installation, 80h x 36”dia.
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Haruko Okano Arboretum
December 2 – January 11
Opening: Thursday, December 1, 6:30 – 8:30pm
Arboretum is an installation made of individually selected pine needles
hung vertically creating an overwhelming sense of being in a forest. The
needles are sorted according to colour: greens, grays, and browns. The
colour accents the disintegration of this material, so viewers may reflect
on not only the beauty of the natural world but its fragility as well. Lit
from above, light filters through the mesh of the needles. Bowls of
sawdust from various species of trees give the room the scent of a
coniferous forest. Haruko Okano is influenced by the Japanese aesthetics
and philosophy of Wabi-Sabi, as it considers nature as a whole process,
including the degenerative as well as the generative phases of growth.
Haruko Okano received arts training in both Toronto and Vancouver. She
has been a practicing professional artist since 1972, and has exhibited
her works both nationally and internationally, including multimedia
installations and assemblages. She was the recipient of the prestigious
VIVA award in 2000. An advocate for artists’ rights, cultural diversity
and human rights, she also creates portable murals and organizes community
developed public art projects.
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