Nana Shimomura

Nana is exploring new expressions of calligraphy with the collaboration of contemporary media. This attitude also reflects in the wide range of her relationships with specialists in other areas including musicians, poets and architects.

In the theme of her work production, she has taken the constellations that exist equally in the night sky as one of the important themes. Linking them to the fundamental perceptions of human beings and continuing to explore new forms of expression using calligraphy.

Our ancestors saw the star-filled sky as a flat canvas and connected the dots to create constellations. These exist above our heads and are accessible to everyone, anywhere. She believes that constellations are the result of our purest form of creative expression.

She strives to express what lies at the root of our universal impulse — the impulse that compelled our ancestors to connect the stars — by marrying the past, present and future. Calligraphy is not just a traditional cultural expression. It is a relic from the past, born from our impulse to express through “writing” — in Japanese, called “kaku.” The word “kaku (writing)” is homophonous to the words “drawing” and “scraping.” I believe that the act of “kaku” as well as music and dancing is our purest form of creativity born from our ancient impulses.

In the 2020’s, we are entering an era where these traces of impulsive expressions can be found in the virtual world. If you find art in your daily life, it is about looking at all the traces.