#Black and white faceless drawings skin

The painter captured this movement in a dynamic way with a thick layer of paint placed directly on the carefully created body. When the hero wants to look in the face of the unknown creature, yōkai washes off parts of its own face using its hand. It is very important in the case of the noppera-bō haunting a person during his stroll along the street.Īnother important aspect that speaks for the apparent similarity of Kimura’s nameless representations to the mythical Japanese creatures is the gesture of wiping the face. A black background suggests that a body bathed in dark endlessness comes from a slightly different reality.

Kimura also enforces an analogous duel with the recipient of her art. As she says, painting allows her to cleanse herself from the excess of emotions and external stimulations. In a large number of paintings, silhouettes are presented en face as if the artist herself was confronted with the emotion/person she encountered. In contrast, Kimura’s paintings present creatures directing their attention to the recipient. The element of surprise is extremely ghastly for the protagonists of such stories. An important role is played by the moment of exposure, when the face is about to be revealed it appears as incomplete. The well-known character Slender Man – the hero of the urban legends – or Kaonashi (from the anime), “My Neighbor Totoro” are just some examples.Īccording to the first stories, the mysterious characters usually would take female form. Currently, the spooky theme is also used in pop culture. This motif appeared in many Japanese publications, including the book Lafacadio Hearn entitled Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things (1903).

#Black and white faceless drawings skin

It turns out that the prototypes from the books – without eyes, nose, and lips with pale skin color – are called noppera-bō. The unknown identity of creatures painted by Kimura is compounded by the lack of expressive facial features. They belong to the group of yōkai, ghosts, and beings very similar to people (at first glance), whose role is to cause sow fear, and even death. In Japanese folklore, faceless beings obtained a well-established, legendary position. Lia Kimura’s works in the context of Japanese folklore Though it is a fact that emerging artists are very often smuggling valuable content, in the case of these works, the intriguing truth is discovered only when we delve into the symbolism of the artist’s native culture. The mysterious apparitions of beautiful women are presented as entangled bodies arising from the darkness. The real, innermost feelings of the author were hidden in numerous faceless beings. The exhibition titled “Lia” tells a story of a young woman Lia Kimura who drew inspiration from the spiritual world. The paintings are supposed to start a specific intercultural communication. In this context, it’s interesting to consider an exhibition of promising Polish artist Japan-born which has opened a few days ago at the Gallery Nanazenit, in Warsaw. One of the basic topics still focuses on the traditional form of painting, redefining an old approach to undefined creation. Artistic societies are gathering and discussing such issues incessantly. by Paulina Brelińskaīig cities are usually interesting common denominators of developing the newest ideological trends or popular motifs. No face? You mean like this? – Lia Kimura’s faceless figures.