A PRAYER TO THE UNIVERSE

Takeshi Maruyama’s sculpture is his bulwark against Death. He describes his art as ‘the source of my salvation.’ Takeshi san’s work reflects a reverence for the unseen, and a profound compassion for human suffering. We first became acquainted in 2020 while he was the resident artist at a Philippine university. However, the virtual collaboration that culminated in this exhibition of work created during that 12-year residency began much more recently. Braving both language and cultural barriers, Takeshi san shared his intimate thoughts and interpretations of his art in a series of intense email exchanges—that included describing how he feels compelled to join his hands in prayer when confronting a completed work. For me, I experience his sculpture as poetry made manifest in clay.

–Walter L. Meyer, AWB Founder