Saving the Wind

風をためて
風的擁抱
风的拥抱
바람을 모아서

A young man is lost in deep thought with his face turned slightly downward. His expression changes depending on how the light shines on him but there is no difference in the way he looks, for some reason, lonesome and captivates the viewer’s heart.

The sculptures by Katsura Funakoshi are always half-length statues of people like this. The body is carved out of camphor tree, into which marble eyes are inserted and to which natural colors are applied. Each sculpture has an individuality that you would like to give a name to and seems to have a personality. Funakoshi himself gives them poetic titles, each of which induces a variety of associations. What season is this young man “saving the wind” in? It is fun to confront him pondering such a point.

Katsura Funakoshi has held individual exhibitions in New York, London, and numerous cities in Germany and his works are popular worldwide.