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Sewn limbs and surreal backdrops in the art of Mari Katayama
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In Mari Katayama's provocative photos, a rare condition that she has suffered from since early childhood -- which resulted in an amputation of both legs at age 9 -- takes center stage. The Japanese artist's body features prominently in her images, surrounded with painstakingly arranged objects, both in intimate settings or set against vast landscapes.
"Bystander #016" (2016) by Mari Katayama Credit: Mari Katayama
In her "Bystander" series, stuffed arms are placed in a tentacle-like fashion, alongside her own two residual limbs.
When Katayama was working as a bartender, a drunk customer told her "a woman is no longer a woman when not wearing high heels." In response, the artist started a project to create heels for her prosthetic legs.
Exhibitions of the project soon followed, featuring self-portraits of Katayama on river banks where she had spent her formative years. Below, the artist tells CNN Style how a unique childhood has shaped her art and worldview.
CNN: What are some of the themes in your work?
Mari Katayama: People would prominently regard physicality as my theme, but I'd rather create without thinking of anything specific at all. The theme depends on what I feel for the moment. Because I believe being an artist is a job for those who live in the era they're in. I feel like I respond to the currents or trends to create something that fits in this era.
CNN: What was it like to have your legs amputated?
MK: It seemed physically difficult to support my body with my own legs. Therefore I had to choose between having prosthetic legs, or being in a wheelchair without amputating my legs. At the time I refused to attend school because of bullying. Then I got hospitalized and had my legs amputated, to escape from the situation. I made a tremendous effort to walk when I started using prosthetic legs.
"Shadow Puppet #020" (2016) by Mari Katayama Credit: Mari Katayama
CNN: Tell us about your childhood -- what was it like, growing up in Gunma?
MK: I used to live in Ota in Gunma prefecture, and the next town is Oizumi, known as "Brazil-town." I attended a nursery school where children from fatherless families, or those of foreign descent, tended to join. As I grew in an environment of intercultural exchange with children or parents who couldn't speak Japanese, I was surprised when I realized that there were only Japanese in Tokyo or other places I visited after growing up. It took longer for me to realize that my upbringing was unusual.
CNN: Did your childhood experiences affect your work?
MK: I guess it affected the process of my personality developing quite a bit. In my childhood I saw bedridden children, kids with tiny holes in their hearts, or those who appeared to be healthy but had serious diseases.
"Beast" (2016) by Mari Katayama Credit: Mari Katayama
CNN: What's the story behind you picking up sewing?
MK: When I used to have legs I was wearing something called an orthosis, which were like rugged boots. I wore them until I was 9, and wasn't really able to wear children's clothes with those on. My mother and grandma would sew clothes for me.
Making something with a needle and thread was more familiar to me than holding a pencil.
I grew up watching that, so making something with a needle and thread was more familiar to me than holding a pencil. I never learned to sew. Professionals would say my sewing was unbelievably sloppy. But I sew in my own way.
CNN: What inspires your costumes? Do you make your corsets from scratch?
MK: My inspiration comes from an accumulation of seeing or talking with various people. With my black corsets, I used a pre-made one as a base, then drew a series of eyes on them. They were based on a model -- a very strong impression of a woman with a costume walking in the red light district of Nagoya stuck in my mind.
CNN: In many of your works, you are surrounded by childhood objects. What's the meaning behind it all?
MK: The series featuring children's legs is linked with my "high heel project," in which I walked with my prosthetic legs with high heels on. I still do it sometimes when I sing or so, to express my sadness of giving up childhood dreams even after growing up.
CNN: Why does your body feature so prominently in your work?
MK: I don't think I have learned to use my body. I use my body as material simply because it's handy. I don't think it's correct to say my body is the subject or the theme of my art.
I often feel like I'm different from others. And the pieces made by this different person should be peculiar. I understand people naturally think this way. I personally would understand the pieces made by those who have peculiar or mysterious backgrounds for the same reason.
CNN: Do you face any difficulties as an Asian female artist?
MK: I do, always. I accept the situation that there are many inconveniences and difficulties out there because I'm a minority -- not as a creator or an artist -- but in ordinary life.
CNN: You will soon become a mother -- will that change the way you work?
MK: I think it will. It will be hard for a while to use sewing tools like needles or thread which have been synonymous with my work. I would like to stay close to my child. Therefore it will be necessary to change materials and projects, I suppose.
Are there many people around you when you shoot?
MK: I prefer shooting self-portraits alone. There are people who think someone other than me is taking the photos, but I push the shutter button myself.
Even when somebody changes the film or places a tripod for me, I want to do things like composition, settings and pressing the shutter button all by myself. I am the kind of person who values touching with my fingertips like I do when I sew. If somebody calls me a control freak -- that might be true.
For more on Mari Katayama's work, visit her website here.
This interview was edited for length and clarity.