Sumi Kanazawa (Japan) in her work depicts a story that derives from the eternal contradiction of the human condition – that of being both an individual and a part of a society. Her resulting installation works are large in scale and are the result of a long process of production. While the motifs in her work are based on many kinds of collective frameworks, such as nation, ethnicity, gender and social status, the artist always seeks to reveal the existence and life of the individual.
During her residency at Delfina Foundation, Sumi will continue her life work of “drawing on newspaper”, using, while in London, papers she finds here. Stemming from her family history of migration to Japan, she also intends to learn about the UK’s history of migration and to speak with immigrants living in UK about their own personal and family histories.
Sumi holds a master’s degree in Fine Art from Kyoto Seika University. Recent major exhibitions include, Listen to the Sound of the Earth Turning: Our Wellbeing since the Pandemic, Mori Art Museum, Tokyo, 2022; and Beyond The Sun, lncheon Art Platform, South Korea, 2019. Sumi received of the CAFAA Award 2020-2021, organised by the Contemporary Art Foundation in Tokyo, through which she was awarded her Delfina residency,
Sumi was born in Hyogo, Japan (1979), and currently lives and works in Tokyo. She is a third-generation Japanese resident of Korean descent.
With support from
and additional support from
Delfina Foundation’s Network of Asia-Pacific Patrons
RESIDENCY SEASON
Sumi’s 12 week residency was undertaken in six-week blocks across two residency seasons, Winter and Summer 2023.
Artist’s website
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Please note all artist-in-residence biographies are accurate at the time of their residency. For up-to-date bios please visit the artist’s website.