Earth, Sea & Air #11; 31 x 24 x 13 cm; blown glass, carved by sandblaster; photo by Kenji Nagai

Migratory Journeys
April 3 – May 5

Opening Reception Thursday, April 2nd from 6pm - 8pm

"Migratory Journeys" is an inner exploration of the power we have lost contact with in our modern society. Takenouchi’s glass sculptures are inspired by the mysterious and astonishing journey of wild life. Takenouchi says, “When I look back at the history of my work, I realize it represents the passage of my life. The creative impulse has always come out of a deep part of my heart and emotions. The essence of my heart is reflected in the glass, sometimes consciously, or at other times unconsciously. After I came to Canada in the fall of 1989, glass-making slowly became my way of navigating through the path of my journey.”

Naoko Takenouchi (East Vancouver) completed a four-year degree course in design and glassblowing at Tama Art University in Tokyo, while taking time to attend the New York Experimental Glass Workshop. Her work experience continued at the Swedish Center Foundation and in the New-Small & Sterling Glass Studio in Vancouver. She attended the Pilchuck Glass School as a scholarship student in 1993 and 1998. She has exhibited her work around the world, and her work was included in New Glass Review 16, the International Exhibition of Glass Kanazawa 1995, the Contemporary Glass Art of the World (Hebei Fine Arts Publishing), Contemporary Glass: Color, Light & Form (Guild Publishing), 500 Glass Objects (Lark Books), and many other national and international publications. In 2002, Takenouchi was invited to be one of the jury members for the Saidy Bronfman Award in Ottawa. She has received many awards in Canada including the Canada Council “mid-career” grant and her work is in the collections of Simon Fraser University and the Clarige/Bronfman Collection in Montreal. She has done commission work for the CBC Sports Award, the Starbucks Coffee President’s Award, and has been commissioned to make Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards since 2003.

Click here to read Thelma's gallery review.