Inner view - Masayo Odahashi

'There is art, which is very direct, art that provokes and makes you think. And then there is art, which attracts you, insisting, surprising and powerful art. Art which moves you and leaves you behind with a calm and warm feeling.’

Dagmar Brendstrup, Executive Director for Glasmuseet Ebeltoft, about Masayo Odahashi’swork

Masayo Odahashi finds her motifs in everyday life – in colours or shapes, which seem unimportant, at first sight but trigger an idea, which eventually becomes a work of art. Her preferred motifs are young women, sitting quietly alone or in pairs with their faces looking down. From time to time they are accompanied by the figure of a rabbit’s head, inspired by traditional Japanese fairytales, in which the rabbit symbolises the unspoiled human being. The paired figures are to be understood as mirror images – two sides of the same person – or two sides of life. The sculptures are characterized by a meditative calmness and an intensity, which spellbinds the viewer. The title of the exhibition, ”Inner View”, is the artist’s own words for describing what her work is about. 

Masayo Odahashi creates her pieces using the lost-wax technique. She pours glass into a form made of plaster, created from sketches and a wax model, which is melted away to give room for the glass. After this, she ’paints’ on face, hair and hands with a thin layer of mixed glass powder (pâte de verre). This technique provides the ’painted’ surfaces with a dull look, which contrasts the almost radiating quality of the dress made of transparent glass. It is as if the mental concentration is being transformed into an inner power, into pure energy, which radiates from the body of the figure.

Despite their Japanese roots and the oriental look of her sculptures, Odahashi’s work speaks a universal language, which can be understood by different cultures all over the world.

Masayo Odahashi was born in Japan, 1975. She works primarily in Kanazawa. She has an M.A. in Fine Arts (2000) and B.A. in Arts & Crafts (1998) from Aichi University of Education, Japan. She has received a number of awards, among others she received an Honorable Mention at The International Exhibition of Glass Kanazawa, 2007. 

The exhibition has been arranged in collaboration with Galerie B, Baden Baden, Germany.

The exhibition will be opened by Jørgen Schou-Christensen, art historian
Friday 12th February at 5pm.

Press photos in high resolution can be downloaded here

For further information, please contact:

Executive Director Dagmar Brendstrup, phone: +45 86 34 17 99 / +45 23 23 52 54, E-mail: dab@glasmuseet.dk or
Pia Strandbygaard Frandsen, Communication and PR, phone: +45 86 34 17 99 / +45 40 32 19 93, E-mail: psf@glasmuseet.dk