Aya Oki
The technique of glass blowing is a means by which I can fully express the appeal of glass that I want to convey. In addition to each tool, I use gravity, centrifugal force, and my own breath to exhale, inhale, and turn the pipe to create a form out of the liquid material. The process and form left by my breath is very satisfying. It is a work of art with a process, and I greatly enjoy the material of glass through this process. I feel attracted to the characteristics of flowing glass especially when it is inflating and stretching. Glass has always responded well to my creativity.
My personal approach comes from the conversations I have with the glass. It speaks to me during the process and the more I have a conversation with it, the more it responds to me, revealing unexpected ideas to improve upon. The conversation is not focused on the beauty of the material, nor is it fixated on an established process, but on the beauty of the personal process itself and its own appreciation. The process also draws out the wonder I have found from the conversation with the glass under construction, from which my personal process is born. Therefore, my work talks about the materiality of the glass and its process.
Aya Oki is a Japanese artist based in San Bernardino, California.
Her technique of glass blowing is intended to express the true charm of glass. Her personal approach is born during the conversation she has while interacting with each piece. Her work is created out of her desire to convey the real pleasure of blown bubbles and the sensual and unique moment when the material swells from the inside to the outside and from the outside to the inside to form its final shape.
Aya completed her undergraduate and master’s degrees in glass at the Aichi University of Education, Japan and was awarded the Grants for Overseas Study by Young Artists from the Pola Art Foundation and the Program of Overseas Study for Upcoming Artists from the Agency for Cultural Affairs in Japan for studying abroad as a researching artist.
Her dream of studying abroad in the States led her to go to California State University, San Bernardino before completing her MFA at Rochester Institute of Technology in 2014. Since then, she has been traveling the world as an artist and an educator.