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| Kozue Kodama and animator Atsushi Wada at NC2012 |
One of the most beautiful
and engaging sights at Nippon Connection 2012 was the artist Kozue Kodama (こだまこずえ) doing live painting. Dressed in a kimono covered
with paint splatters, Kodama spent hours at her canvas every day for the
duration of the festival. At first, the
canvas was just black and white, but as she progressed she added more and more
layers to the canvas and it soon was awash with bright yellow, pink, and blue
hues. The central image of the painting
is a majestic red-crowned crane (タンチョウ/tanchō). After the festival, the painting was
auctioned off and the money raised went to earthquake and tsunami relief
efforts in the Tohoku region.
Kodama grew
up in Hiroshima and studied oil painting at Hiroshima University. She is best known for doing paintings on
large canvases, but she has also dabbled in acting, animation, and at the
Nippon Connection karaoke bar she demonstrated that she has an amazing set of
pipes as well.
Some of
Kodama’s accomplishments include showing at the Biennale in Venice in 2005,
creating concert fliers for the jazz musician Naruyoshi Kikuchi, and a huge 16
meter painting on the wall of a bridge which won her the Design Art Sign Award
as part of the project Revitalizing the City of Hiroshima (2008). Her animated short Suipas Zuirapusa (スイパスズイラプサ, 2009) which she made in
collaboration with Yoko Tanabe, was
nominated for the NHK Digista Best Selection.
It also featured in the indie film Plum Essence (2009)
which Kodama also starred in.
Since early
2011, Kodama has been based in Düsseldorf – the largest centre for Japanese
culture in Germany. Her husband, Seiichi Sato is a professional hair
stylist at the chic salon Leo’s
Düsseldorf. Kodama’s next event is
another Charity Live Painting. It will
be held at the Tres
Chicas Bistro and Café in Düsseldorf next Friday night Friday, June 29th (note the date change!), from 18:00 – 23:00
with all money going to earthquake and tsunami relief. Learn more about Kodama on her official website and YouTubechannel.
