Fire is at the core of Masaomi Yasunaga’s creative exploration both literally and conceptually – each work is given its unique patina through the alchemical transformations that are implanted in them by the intense heat of the kiln. As Yasunaga states: “the ultimate goal of my art is not self-expression but what’s left of self, after being filtered through fire.” The artist’s profound understanding of the power of fire – its value and its destructive force – have developed through experience. The artist suffered the catastrophic consequences of fire a when his outdoor kiln spread to a wildfire, and he lost much of his own work. However, in spite of this, he describes how beauty can be discovered in the most uncontrollable situations, referring to the process of his sculptures transitioning in the fire, evolving from something artificial to natural, and yielding a beauty that is perfectly pure. Regenerating Vessel, 2022 speaks of this transformation and embodies the force of fire which is simultaneously one of destruction and creation. It is a work about metamorphosis and change as a state of being, speaking to its own inextricable boundedness from the forces of nature and time.

Fire is at the core of Masaomi Yasunaga’s creative exploration both literally and conceptually – each work is given its unique patina through the alchemical transformations that are implanted in them by the intense heat of the kiln. As Yasunaga states: “the ultimate goal of my art is not self-expression but what’s left of self, after being filtered through fire.” The artist’s profound understanding of the power of fire – its value and its destructive force – have developed through experience. The artist suffered the catastrophic consequences of fire a when his outdoor kiln spread to a wildfire, and he lost much of his own work. However, in spite of this, he describes how beauty can be discovered in the most uncontrollable situations, referring to the process of his sculptures transitioning in the fire, evolving from something artificial to natural, and yielding a beauty that is perfectly pure. Regenerating Vessel, 2022 speaks of this transformation and embodies the force of fire which is simultaneously one of destruction and creation. It is a work about metamorphosis and change as a state of being, speaking to its own inextricable boundedness from the forces of nature and time.

Fire is at the core of Masaomi Yasunaga’s creative exploration both literally and conceptually – each work is given its unique patina through the alchemical transformations that are implanted in them by the intense heat of the kiln. As Yasunaga states: “the ultimate goal of my art is not self-expression but what’s left of self, after being filtered through fire.” The artist’s profound understanding of the power of fire – its value and its destructive force – have developed through experience. The artist suffered the catastrophic consequences of fire a when his outdoor kiln spread to a wildfire, and he lost much of his own work. However, in spite of this, he describes how beauty can be discovered in the most uncontrollable situations, referring to the process of his sculptures transitioning in the fire, evolving from something artificial to natural, and yielding a beauty that is perfectly pure. Regenerating Vessel, 2022 speaks of this transformation and embodies the force of fire which is simultaneously one of destruction and creation. It is a work about metamorphosis and change as a state of being, speaking to its own inextricable boundedness from the forces of nature and time.

Fire is at the core of Masaomi Yasunaga’s creative exploration both literally and conceptually – each work is given its unique patina through the alchemical transformations that are implanted in them by the intense heat of the kiln. As Yasunaga states: “the ultimate goal of my art is not self-expression but what’s left of self, after being filtered through fire.” The artist’s profound understanding of the power of fire – its value and its destructive force – have developed through experience. The artist suffered the catastrophic consequences of fire a when his outdoor kiln spread to a wildfire, and he lost much of his own work. However, in spite of this, he describes how beauty can be discovered in the most uncontrollable situations, referring to the process of his sculptures transitioning in the fire, evolving from something artificial to natural, and yielding a beauty that is perfectly pure. Regenerating Vessel, 2022 speaks of this transformation and embodies the force of fire which is simultaneously one of destruction and creation. It is a work about metamorphosis and change as a state of being, speaking to its own inextricable boundedness from the forces of nature and time.