DECEMBER 17, 2021. GRACE EBERT

All images © En Iwamura, courtesy of Ross + Kramer Gallery

From hunks of clay, artist En Iwamura (previously) sculpts minimal forms with wildly varied facial expressions that range from shock and surprise to moody contemplation. Etched across the surface of each character are neat pathways of parallel lines, which evoke the clean, sweeping patterns in zen gardens, that are a physical manifestation of the Japanese concept of Ma. The philosophy identifies “the space between the edges, between the beginning and the end, the space and time in which we experience life. Ma is filled with nothing but energy and feeling.” […]

More: Waves of Engraved Lines Texture the Emotional Figures Sculpted by En Iwamura