International Marriage – mixed media

Description

“International Marriage” embodies elements of similarity and changes over time.

This mixed-media collage is created on a page from a vintage Japanese law book discussing international marriages. It is a fitting foundation for exploring the union of diverse elements. 

Two primary forms dominate the composition: a bold black painted gesture and a copper-tipped twist of New Zealand flax. Like partners in a marriage, they differ in size, media, and direction, yet share similarities in color and form, coming together harmoniously across the surface.

Supporting elements—a luminous orb above, organic form below, and pale circular motifs behind—create depth and narrative possibility. The work incorporates my handmade papers and materials sourced from this region of Japan: ochre from an Okugome tunnel, clay from Oyama Senmaida rice fields, charcoal from a 120-year-old minka, along with dyes extracted from ramie, indigo, and a copper oxide made with local wakame seaweed.

This American artist lives and works in Japan, blending local natural materials with techniques across multiple cultural traditions. She has developed an international marriage of ideas and materials.

Like the relationships it represents, “International Marriage” will evolve and transform over time as its natural materials age, fade, and change.

The artwork is mounted in a gold-trimmed lacquered Japanese frame with a velvet matte. The elegant frame, sourced from a second hand shop in Tateyama, shows its history with small dents and dings appropriate to the theme of the collage.