Insect Skins 2011

by LizAtkin :: You need to be a member to contact artists →Join :: Portfolio

Liz Atkin is a visual artist based in London. With a background in theatre and dance, physicality underpins her creative practice. She was a Fellowship Artist at the Akiyoshidai International Art Village in Japan in August 2011. Liz worked hard to make the residency happen, overcoming funding disappointments and months of applications, but she says the experience was life changing:

“My artistic practice was tested in long hours of solitude. It was incredibly challenging. However, with patience, subtle elements of Japan began to influence my work. New films emerged – full body movement, and strange photographs of miniature paintings. I was influenced by insects and the elements. Insect Skin series dealt exclusively with the insects I encountered and my physical contact with them, as if their tiny legs were dipped in acrylic as they wandered across my body. I was also interested in kanji and the calligraphy of Japan. The work made on the residency came from a new place of acceptance, a new connected creativity to the elements, to nature, to organic forms, sensations and movements within the body and outside it. “(Liz Atkin)