Austin Art Talk Episode 56: Koichi Yamamato

About this Episode

"Failure or success is really subjective, and it’s conditional. The one moment I might consider a failure, I learned something so I guess since I learned something maybe it wasn’t a failure. By having those prints I will open up another possibility that I didn’t even consider thinking of. I think those are fertilizer. Probably it stinks in the beginning but it will eventually become part of a very important fuel for the creativity. Then try to solve the problem from the difficult condition in a way. I think the failure is extremely important."

Bio courtesy of Koichi's website

Koichi Yamamoto is an artist who merges traditional and contemporary techniques so as to develop unique and innovative approaches to the language of printmaking. His prints explore issues of the sublime, memory, and atmosphere. Koichi has worked at many scales, from small and meticulously engraved copper plates to large monotypes.

He completed a BFA at the Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, Oregon and then moved to Krakow, Poland, later he studied engraving at the Bratislava Academy of Fine Arts in the Slovak Republic. Koichi also studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Poznan, Poland and completed an MFA at the University of Alberta, Canada. In addition he has worked as a textile designer in Fredericia, Denmark.

Koichi has exhibited internationally. He has taught at Utah State University and the University of Delaware and is currently an Associate Professor at University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

Some of the subjects we discuss:

Introduction
Wyoming/ceramics
Gyotaku/Japan
Art school in Portland
Myrna Burks/Printmaking
Communal art
Clay, Prints, Drawing
Light & atmosphere
Dr. Gordon Gilkey
Move to Poland
The Artist union
Improvisation/adaptation
Economic optimism
Letter to Liz Ingram
MFA in Alberta
Large relief printing
Drawing/human body
Move to Denmark
Immigration/language
Utah State University
Starting Intaglio
Knoxville,Tennessee
The physical mark
Kite surfing
Making kites
Japanese gods
Symmetry/faces
Monotype/light
Making decisions
Failure and fear
Sketchbooks
Good shoes/health
Sports/decisions
Risk/safety
Traveling/story
Kite with history
Role of artist
Communicating
Final words