Kanoko Takaya/髙屋 佳乃子

(b. 1991, Japanese)

Kanoko Takaya is a Japanese artist based in Bali. When Kanoko was a child, she often went on trips to Bali alongside her mother, and there she was first introduced to Indonesia’s diverse culture. Growing up surrounded by Indonesian folk art and Batik, she developed a love for the Indonesian culture. After graduating from Kyoto Seika, majoring in Visual Design, Kanoko was longing to return to Indonesia. She eventually returned to Indonesia in 2014, where she continued her studies at Indonesia University of the Arts (ISI), Surakarta (Solo), Central Java.

During her two years residing in Solo, Kanoko further explored traditional Indonesian culture in depth – particularly fascinated by Indonesian Masks (Topeng) such as the “Bobung” mask in Yogyakarta (Central Java) and the mask of Malang (East Java). Indonesian masks draw her attention because of their variety of expressions, which she feels perfectly represents the nature of Indonesians– very open and expressive, differing from Japanese masks, which show detailed but limited expressions. Her fascination with Indonesian folk art and traditional masks are reflected through the motifs of her artworks. Kanoko creates artwork using various techniques and mediums such as acrylic plates, illustrations on canvas, paper, and fabric, antique decoration, and other three-dimensional formats. Often portraying natural iconography, her designs are a combination of Indonesian culture and what she feels or sees. In her third year in Indonesia, Kanoko moved to Bali and became an in-house artist for the apparel shop Pithecanthropus Bali, establishing her brand, Kanokon, until late 2019.

Kanoko’s works have been exhibited mainly throughout Indonesia and Japan. She participated in numerous group exhibitions such as EQUIDISTANT, Kohesi, Yogyakarta, Indonesia (2020); ART STARTUP 100 at Daikanyama Hill Side Terrace, Tokyo, Japan and Pluralism at Soup n’ film, Jakarta, Indonesia (2019); Sorry No Guestlist, Anagra Gallery, Tokyo, Japan (2018); 23 Count Down Project at Villa Rumah 23, Bali, Indonesia, Seed of Memory at Langgeng Art Foundation, Yogyakarta, Indonesia and Bare Journal at Cataodata, Bali, Indonesia (2017). Her solo exhibitions include Monkeys In Banyan Tree held in 2018 at Chachara, Bali, Indonesia (2018), and Primitive Emotion held in 2017 at Studio Eksotika, Bali, Indonesia. Her first solo exhibition Lucky Indonesia was held in 2014 at H2O Gallery, Kyoto, Japan.