Our new exhibition, “The Exodus”, opens TONIGHT, 12-13-2019 in Portland!
If you are in Portland, OR please come by Nucleus Portland tonight 6-9pm and say hi and check out our new show of kozy’s ceramic sculptures, and paintings by us as well! We are presenting almost 130 new “bunny primitive” sculptures, most of whom have been on a long journey from the traditional wood kilns in the Japanese countryside, to Los Angeles, to Portland to share with all of you! We also made 7 new paintings to accompany the sculptures.
As always, each sculpture is a one-of-a-kind, hand built ceramic sculpture, and each comes with a card with their picture, name, and story, stamped and signed by kozy.
The show runs December 13, 2019 - January 15, 2020 at Nucleus Portland. 1445 SE Hawthorne Blvd. Portland, OR. 97214 ph: (503) 231-2702
The autumn image in our “Seasons of the Rabbit” series. Dan turned falling autumn leaves into bunnies drifting down over a rushing river. Print available in our web shop. Like “Bunny Blossoms” it is not based on a specific ukiyo-e masterpiece, but captures the feel of a genre of landscape in those Japanese woodblock prints.
“We’re All In This Together” Maybe we are all losing our shit, but we really are all in this together. Don’t forget that with this hand signed and numbered limited edition of 30 archival gicleé prints on Somerset Watercolor paper. Image size 18 x 24 inches (457 x 610mm) + a white border around for total paper size of 22 x 28 inches.
The original image was an acrylic painting with gold leaf on board.
NOTE: From here on out, we will be pouring any profits from your purchases into restoring the 130 year old house in the Japanese countryside that kozy purchased to make a creative retreat for people to experience the other side of Japan beyond the big city life. So please consider buying a new kozyndan limited edition!
Hand made by kozy, this one-of-a-kind ceramic sculpture was created for her 2018 exhibition “Growing Into Roots”, part of her ongoing series of “bunny primitive” sculptures, she made this piece while doing a residency at the prestigious Shigaraki Ceramic Cultural Park in Japan. The sculpture measures 8 x 7.5 x 5 inches and comes with a card with the its photo, name, and story, signed and stamped by kozy.
“Ando-san is a homebody. His good friends can sometimes get him to go out, but doesn’t like loud bars.”
38 of the 140+ new bunny primitive sculptures Kozy made for her solo show, “Growing Into Roots”, at Giant Robot. The exhibition runs September 8-26th, 2018. Remaining sculptures are available at Giant Robot’s Web Store now!
“Growing Into Roots” is the new exhibition by Kozy Kitchens at Giant Robot 2 - GR2 Gallery in Los Angeles, CA. The exhibition will be on viewSeptember 8th, 2018 through September 26th, 2018.
Giant Robot GR2 Gallery 2062 Sawtelle Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 20025 www.giantrobot.com
Kozy is presenting an installation of over 160 new ceramic sculptures, including 140+ new figures in her ongoing “Bunny Primitive” series, as well as glowing crystal sculptures, wind chimes, and sound objects.
From Kozy: “This summer I had the honor of attending the prestigious residency program at the Shigaraki Ceramics Cultural Park in Shiga prefecture, Japan, to further my exploration of ceramics, a medium that I have developed a passion for in the last 6 years. It was a humbling experience to learn traditional techniques and to use the traditional wood fueled kilns, as well as discover that all the local clays and different techniques of glazing and firing employed in my home country for centuries. During my 3 month stay at the residency I chose to make learning about these techniques, about my own cultural heritage, my priority. I continued working with the same ” bunny primitive" forms I had been creating in the US, and found so much joy in discovering these parts of my culture I wasn’t aware of before.
It’s struck me that I had left Japan in 1997 as a teenager, wanting to escape what I thought of as a rigid, staid culture, for the relative excitement and artistic freedom of the USA. I have made a good life here in Los Angeles over the last two decades, and have been fortunate to make a living from my artistic practice, but I have missed my family and thought of this residency as a good excuse to see more of them while I continued to work. What I found, though, was a new appreciation for my own heritage. Maybe it is just a function of having been away so long, or the newly chaotic cultural climate in the US these last few years, or maybe I have just matured enough to appreciate Japanese culture (a culture that, unlike American culture, really reveres, and in many ways is geared toward, older people). Probably it is a combination of all these things, but whatever the case, attending the residency, and creating the works I am presenting in this exhibition, altered my direction in life, and gave me a new understanding of my identity. “
“Growing Into Roots” is the new exhibition by Kozy Kitchens opening Saturday, September 8th, 2018 at Giant Robot 2 - GR2 Gallery in Los Angeles, CA. The exhibition will be on view through September 26th, 2018.
Kozy is presenting an installation of over 160 new ceramic sculptures, including 140+ new figures in her ongoing “Bunny Primitive” series.
From Kozy: “This summer I had the honor of attending the prestigious residency program at the Shigaraki Ceramics Cultural Park in Shiga prefecture, Japan, to further my exploration of ceramics, a medium that I have developed a passion for in the last 6 years. It was a humbling experience to learn traditional techniques and to use the traditional wood fueled kilns, as well as discover that all the local clays and different techniques of glazing and firing employed in my home country for centuries. During my 3 month stay at the residency I chose to make learning about these techniques, about my own cultural heritage, my priority. I continued working with the same ” bunny primitive" forms I had been creating in the US, and found so much joy in discovering these parts of my culture I wasn’t aware of before.
It’s struck me that I had left Japan in 1997 as a teenager, wanting to escape what I thought of as a rigid, staid culture, for the relative excitement and artistic freedom of the USA. I have made a good life here in Los Angeles over the last two decades, and have been fortunate to make a living from my artistic practice, but I have missed my family and thought of this residency as a good excuse to see more of them while I continued to work. What I found, though, was a new appreciation for my own heritage. Maybe it is just a function of having been away so long, or the newly chaotic cultural climate in the US these last few years, or maybe I have just matured enough to appreciate Japanese culture (a culture that, unlike American culture, really reveres, and in many ways is geared toward, older people). Probably it is a combination of all these things, but whatever the case, attending the residency, and creating the works I am presenting in this exhibition, altered my direction in life, and gave me a new understanding of my identity. “
5 “Schooling Bunnyfish” Paintings 12 in. x 12 in. acrylic gouache on handmade Japanese paper 2020
Kozy made these paintings to help us raise funds for our big move to the countryside of Japan (just shipping our furniture, and some belongings will cost $7,000US!). Thankfully our fans responded and bought these up quickly! SO SO grateful for our fans after all these years. Its a reminder that this is a two way relationship - we could not live and make art without the support and appreciation of those people with whom our work resonates.
A few of the many new “bunny primitive” sculptures kozy made for our show “The Exodus” that opened in December 2019 at Nucleus Portland. Some of these pieces are still available through their website, so check it out!
One of the paintings kozy made for our exhibition “The Exodus” at Nucleus Portland. This was the first time we made some 2D dimensional art to pair with the “bunny primitives” sculptures series that kozy has been making the last 6 years. When filling pages sketching ideas for new sculptures forms, Dan always thought the results of the results looked like cave paintings of early man and decided to make a few paintings for the show like this. Kozy liked the concept and ran with it, experimenting by complexifying the technique to add color, In this painting, we had a dual intention of describing the peaceful intermingling of all the different shapes and colors of the creatures, but also, like in the "Shrine of the Ancestors" painting, we were thinking about the idea of ancestors still being present with us, guiding us, and helping us towards happiness.
One of the paintings kozy made for our exhibition “The Exodus” at Nucleus Portland. This was the first time we made some 2D dimensional art to pair with the “bunny primitives” sculptures series that kozy has been making the last 6 years. When filling pages sketching ideas for new sculptures forms, Dan always thought the results of the results looked like cave paintings of early man and decided to make a few paintings for the show like this. Kozy liked the concept and ran with it, experimenting by complexifying the technique to add color, gradients, or in this case, modeled shading. The results of this one reminded Dan of a sculpture garden and envisioned the society of these critters erecting sculptural totems of their ancestors that they could interact with, not just in some solemn remembrance, but to enjoy and interact with, get advice from, dance and laugh with, to keep their ancestors close their hearts and present in their lives.
My four bunny-themed pieces for the Salut! 7 show opening tonight at Gallery Nucleus Portland at 5 PM PST. Pieces will also be available for sale online after the opening ✨
“Almiraj / The Black Rabbit V” Sketchbook & Digital / Pencil & Exterior House Paint, 2019
Almiraj is ode to spring, new growth, and color emerging from the remnants of the mean seasons. The titling comes from the horned rabbits of sea serpent island in Zakariya al-Qazwini’s The Wonders of Creation.
It’s a little earlier than intended, but I’m excited to close out my fourth year as The Black Rabbit with this piece ushering in year five and all that it has to offer on the horizon. Feel free to go see the mural for yourself if you’re in the Atlanta area off Carroll Street :)
“I fell in love with the sound of my heels on the wooden floor; I don’t want my footsteps to be silent anymore”
“Lacuna / The Black Rabbit IV” Sketchbook & Digital, 2018
Breaks and pauses to reorient the pieces with yourself aren’t stagnation if you remember to keep moving forward after the rest. There is always a special place in me for new beginnings that keep room still to celebrate the old, and with each new iteration I like to believe something has been made better. More understanding, better introspection, and the capacity to help others accept change as well.
This, for me, is a return to the nostalgic spots that the Summer is no stranger to breathing life into. Movement in poise, a balance of both motion and static, here’s to the Summer nights and the comforts of Fall to follow. I love you all, and thank you for continuing to indulge these images of mine <3
A stack of greenware mugs drying! I’ll be running a kiln of greenware later this week and these are a few of the things that will be in the shop later this month
![[ The Black Rabbit 4th Year Anniversary ]“Almiraj / The Black Rabbit V” Sketchbook &](https://64.media.tumblr.com/e353b5c9775ad558ae4965f92c662993/tumblr_pmjmgtF3tm1rqfoq5o1_1280.jpg "[ The Black Rabbit 4th Year Anniversary ]“Almiraj / The Black Rabbit V” Sketchbook &")
