Surreal pop art energy: In interview with Kota Yamaji
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Kota Yamaji creates colourful digital art giving pop art a whole new meaning: the Japanese creative, based in Tokyo, shares how his identity and digital toolkits continue to influence his practice and artistic vision.
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Hi Kota, Please tell us about your story and creative vision as a digital artist.
I am a digital artist based in Tokyo, Japan. I graduated from Tama Art University with a bachelor in graphic design. Digital art is not as valued as physical art at the moment, but it will be recognised in the near future and I want to represent a Japanese style of digital art.
How is your art, with its surreal pop art energy and vibrant use of colour, influenced by your own cultural background?
Some Japanese art and fashion are really colourful and vivid, which I became curious about because Japanese people are usually modest and tend not to stand out. There is strong suppression and peer pressure in Japan. I think that to counter this, artists create vivid and colourful art, and fashionable people wear colourful and slightly weird clothes. Artists are always on the opposite side of peer pressure and common sense.
How has the digital technology you use shaped your art, and your own identity as a creative person? Does your process also involve traditional mediums?
Before entering university, I practiced using traditional tools like pencil and acrylic paint in order to pass the examination. By the time I had passed it, I had already become tired of using these tools so I tried to find another way to express myself. And I found digital technology. I treat these new technologies the same way as traditional tools.
Much of your work revolves around unconventional human figures, can you share more about the concepts you enjoy exploring in your art?
I just don't like a human made with 3D so I just replace them with other shapes.
It is just a matter of my taste.
Your art spans different mediums including NFT and augmented reality fashion for the metaverse. How do you see your work, and your ability to push your own creativity, evolving within these new spaces?
At first I thought these technologies had a lot of potential and were useful, but now that many suspicious people have entered these new spaces, I’ve become skeptical. But at the same time, these technologies are still interesting and important. I can't say with optimism that they give hope, but I can't say they are completely useless either. It's difficult. I am hoping for hardware improvement, I don't want to put on huge goggles to enter the metaverse.
What does creative collaboration mean to you?
We can grow and find new ways to express ourselves through one another.
What is one artistic achievement you’re most proud of?
This series I made 5 years ago is the basis of my current style. I'm not sure it can be called an achievement, but it was a big discovery for me.
If you had one word of wisdom to share with the world, what would it be?
Don't be cynical. ✺
Find Kota online
www.kotayamaji.com
@kotayamaji
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