Photo by Kaoru Minamino. Courtesy of Sokyo Gallery

Wani (Alligator)

Artist Akinaga Kunihiro (Japanese, born 1978)

Date2019

MediumCeramic

DimensionsOverall: 12 5/8 × 54 5/16 × 10 1/4 in. (32 × 138 × 26 cm)

ClassificationsSculpture

Credit LineMuseum purchase, 2024

Object number2024.12

Wani (Alligator) belongs to “Mimicry” (2001~), an ongoing series of sculptures that take the form of animal skeletons. Formally realistic, yet equipped with machine-like spurs, ridges, and spikes, and encased in a satiny black glaze, the sculptures bring to mind anatomical models or the fossils of robotic creatures from the world of science fiction. Of this series, the artist has said, “My image of decorations are the excess decorations of temples and churches –– the view of the world between life and death. I also feel that by decorating, the truth of things gets hidden. For example, in our lives the packaging and decoration of our food diverts our attention from the death of animals. By using the concept of decorations, you can find modernity even in something universal such as life and death.” Akinaga’s creative process is both scientific and artistic. He begins by researching the animal’s skeletal anatomy with the help of a professional taxidermist. He then sketches the components on paper, and hand-builds the individual “bones” in clay. Following firing and glazing, he assembles the parts together, using steel where necessary. In using a traditional medium to create non-traditional forms, and invoking Buddhist concepts such as impermanence to comment upon contemporary concerns over humankind’s destruction of the Earth, Akinaga’s practice belongs to both the contemporary international art world and the realm of Japanese fine crafts. Photo by Kaoru Minamino, courtesy of Sokyo Gallery.

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