Utatane Rinko Kawauchi

Carp, clouds, crows, a fried egg, and tiny ants on the pavement.
Utatane is a profound observation of the mundane—the fleeting, everyday scenes and minute details that often escape our notice.

Through Rinko Kawauchi’s lens, an ordinary glass sparkles like a jewel, a single ant is transformed into a stylish silhouette, and the carcass of a dove exudes a chilling, untouchable presence. Her work captures a delicate "tenderness" that exists alongside a visceral "terror." By distilling the cycles of life and death from the fragments of daily life, Kawauchi has created a masterpiece that remains the definitive starting point of her internationally acclaimed career.