The reason why Haruko creates works with bones as their theme
arose from two different experiences of death that she had – one very
personal and the other more general.
One reason was the direct experience of death. Three years ago she
sat at the death bed of her university colleague. His death when he
was only in his early twenties was really unbearable and painful.
Since then thoughts and questions about death have been close to
my heart.”
The second inspiration came from her interest in relics in European
churches and from the bones in the catacombs. She found impressive
the peculiar tradition of keeping relics, which specifically developed
in the Catholic Church, and the countless bones in the catacombs
of St Stephen’s Cathedral under the streets of Vienna city centre.
Keeping the bodies of the departed and revering them greatly
astonished Haruko.
Haruko says: “In the proximity of the churches one often finds
displayed on a notice board a list of people who have recently died,
together with photos and year of death. Whenever I see them I feel
for them, personally, even though they are strangers. I even had this
feeling towards the bones under St Stephens’s Cathedral. In my work
I attempt to construct a narrative about existence, both life and death:
on the one hand I make use of my personal story and on the other
hand an interpretation of the historical story.” |
 |
DE
