Margaret Kasahara
India ink, glassine, alkyd, thread, and pencil, 3.625"x3.625" on 7"x6.25" rag paper in 14"x11" frame
Margaret Kasahara
My artwork is an exploration of identity. It is informed by my gender, race, Japanese ethnicity, culture, and respect for nature. I interweave memories, personal history, and observations to create visual dialogs and expressions of everyday life. I often use ordinary objects and familiar materials and place them in a personal and transformative context. I approach my subject matter seriously, yet with a wink and a light heart.
My perspectives on identity encompass thoughts on the search for unity and ideas regarding the mutable nature of identity itself. I feel we are an amalgam of our personal and collective experiences and that we metaphorically sew, tape, and mend our layers and fragments of experience together to define ourselves and to make meaning of what we see.
The work is my response to daily life, serendipitous connections, and the poetry of everyday things.