STORY BEHIND THE ART OF ASUKA HISHIKI
Weird, Wild, & Wonderful
Second New York Botanical Garden Triennial Exhibition
2014 - 2016
Wasabi
Eutrema japonica
If you think of Wasabi, probably a tiny ball of green paste will come to mind, the one you see on your sushi plate. Being Japanese-born, I am so proud that I have seen real Wasabi root. It is such a strangely shaped root vegetable with a pale but intense green color. Unlike tube wasabi, the real wasabi tastes much milder and has an elegant sensation when you put it in your mouth.
I found a Wasabi farmer who ships it to customers directly. The Wasabi on his website looked so fresh and his Wasabi farm was just like a heaven. Wasabi grows in gently running streams like wild watercress. It needs pure water and air, and mild sunshine in colder weather. See - I know a lot about Wasabi!
However, you should have seen my face when I received the Wasabi from the farm. It was nothing like what I had seen in a market. I knew all the round shapes on the wasabi body are scars after the side roots have been cut off, but seeing the wasabi covered with thousands of fine roots simply shocked me. Yes, I knew that roots are normally cut off before it is shipped, and that’s why I particularly asked him to send it as “natural” as possible. What I never expected was that Wasabi would have this many roots!
I didn’t have a moment to hesitate. Wasabi lasts longer than leafy vegetables, but the clock was ticking. I literally spent days and nights painting. If I had used oil or acrylic, I could have painted the tangled roots from back to front. I did draw the roots from back to front. However, unlike these media, with watercolor I had to leave many blanks where the front roots cross over. At the beginning, there were many, many dash lines. I kept adding more dash lines of roots, and eventually the root labyrinth emerged from chaos. I certainly enjoyed painting it, but it is also true that occasionally I regretted that I had picked the subject. I think most people who read this will agree with me! My confession - I often do question myself why I fell in love with THAT. Recently, I came across a phenomenon called runner's high. When one runs a long, long distance, the brain produces chemicals that give a feeling of joy. I think there may be a similar excitement for everything! What I experienced would be "painter's high", because the joy of completing this was indescribable. But I promise myself that I won't fall in love with something so complicated any more.........well, at least not for a while.