Miya Ando

Ocean sutra2, (2011), medium hand dyed aluminum, 48 x 48 x 1 in.

In my work, I create quiet, abstract, meditative environments as a study of spiritual expression. Ultimately I am interested in the study of subtraction to the point of purity, simplicity and refinement. I am Japanese and Russian-American, a descendant of Bizen sword maker Ando Yoshiro Masakatsu and was raised between two worlds: among sword smiths-turned Buddhist priests in a Buddhist temple in Okayama, Japan and amongst the redwoods in coastal Santa Cruz, California. I am influenced by meditation, nature, geometry and the ethos and aesthetics of Zen Reductivism. I work primarily in metals and light, themes in my work are impermanence, transformation and transcendence.

Nova scotia, (2011), medium hand dyed aluminum, 48 x 48 in.

Miya Ando created a new series of works with a technique she developed last year using a hand dyeing and anodizing technique on aluminum. The color works are entitled  Sue Getsu Ka (Water, Moon, Flower), a Japanese saying meaning “The reflection of a flower in moonlight that is floating in water” – it has to do with absence and presence and the beauty in all things fleeting and transitory. These are the words of a Zen Master to a Zen Monk after completion of the Zen Monk’s training.

Sui Getsu Ka (water, moon, flower) 6, (2011), hand dyed aluminum, 24 x 24 in.

The foundation of my studio practice is based on the transformation of surfaces, focusing to create works with light and metals. I have a deep appreciation for the dynamic properties of metal and its ability to reflect light. Metal simultaneously conveys strength and permanence and yet in the same instant can appear delicate, fragile, luminous, soft, and ethereal. The medium becomes both a contradiction and juxtaposition for expressing notions of evanescence, including ideas such as the transitory and ephemeral nature of all things, quietude and the underlying impermanence of everything.

These works are created with permanent metal dye on anodized aluminum, which I use like watercolor to paint onto the aluminum ‘canvas’. The result is an effect of luminousness, a window of light on the reflective metal.

Sui Getsu Ka 10, (2011), hand dyed aluminum, 24 x 24 in.

Quietness, 48 x 48 in.

The next following group of works are called Night Works, these works are the black pieces Miya Ando completed last month. The titles include Fudo, a Japanese word meaning “immovable, unchanging, absolute”. Other titles include Depth and Rei Mei another Japanese word meaning  “After the dead of night”. These works are also created by hand dyeing metal.

Depth 7,(2012), hand dyed aluminum, 48 x 48 in.

Fudo “Unchanging, immovable, absolute” 2, (2012), hand dyed aluminum, 24 x 24 in.

Rei Mei “After the dead of night” 2,(2012), hand dyed aluminum, 24 x 24 in.

Depth 2, (2012), hand dyed aluminum, 24 x 24 in.

Depth 3, (2012), hand dyed aluminum, 12 x 12 in.

Depth 6, (2012), hand dyed aluminum, 12 x 12 in.

Recently my work has combined 2D and 3D pieces into installations of transformative minimal spaces and environments. These contemplative, luminous voids are at once empty and serene, while also alive, filled with potential and possibility. In these new installations, I invite the viewer into a meditative space, and it is my hope that these spaces inspire introspection, reflection and solace.

Cube, Red on Red, 2.5 x 2.5 in.

Reflection cube, faint lavender, 5 x 5 x 2.5 in.

Reflection cube, aqua, 4 x 4 x 3 in.

Reflection cube, pink, 2.5 x 2.5 x 2.5 in.

Obon rendering day

Obon rendering night

I have recently completed the 10 year anniversary of 9/11 public commission, created from 30 foot sections of World Trade Center Steel, which was unveiled September 5th [2011] in London by Mayor Boris Johnson. For this work, I left the steel unchanged in form but polished part of the material into a highly refined, mirror finish which reflected light. My intention is to put forth quiet and transcendent environments which come from a place of sincerity and compassion.

Miya Ando’s Website

 Miya Ando with Fist Art Foundation ‘Obon’ [Puerto Rico]