The fanciful and dream-like artwork of Fumiyo Yoshikawa, instructor of art at Mesa State College, will be featured in the Hang Ups Fine Art gallery. Twenty or so of her paintings will be on display Feb. 6-28, with a reception on Feb. 6 from 6:00-9:00 p.m. Yoshikawa met with the Criterion to talk about her exhibit, artistic style, and her daughter, who is one of her biggest influences.

Q: What is featured in the show?
A: “I paint about my dreams and about my daughter, Madoka, especially dreaming, or a sleeping face. It’s all related to what’s deep in [my] mind or memories from my childhood, my relationship with my mother when I was a child and maybe the relationship between my daughter and I. A dream is like floating, its continuing and connecting all of those memories.”

Q: What went into your art work; is it collective or is this all new?
A:  “Most of them are current work, either last year or two years ago, since I gave birth to my daughter. I brought some extra work because it’s a related subject—fish. I have been painting fish for a long time, because it’s like a metaphor for my dreams, like floating … in the sky or in space.”

Q: Would you say you have a specific style? What types of influence do you have?
A: “I have been influenced by many types of art. But not really influenced by anything or everything, not related to some specific something. Definitely Nihonga for [the] fish and Japanese [style] painting. For pigment I use traditionally Japanese pigment, which is made of minerals or clay, sometimes plants, all natural things. My technique is a stress on my lines, instead of making 3-D art it’s more flat. I express my art in a very Nihonga way; it’s more flat and using lines effectively.”

Q: Do you think moving to the U.S. has influence you art much?
A:“Yes, because I can’t get Nihonga pigment, I use acrylic or water color or some other western materials [more] since I came to the US. I combine acrylic and water color, and sometimes other materials, and layer to make it look like Nihonga, like the appearance to the Nihonga paintings.”

Q: What can viewers expect from your show; how do you hope it affects people?
A: “Umm, if they feel something calm, or soothe their feelings. Or maybe think about their relationship with family or friends, those who surround them. I want to keep showing [my] paintings, I want to introduce more about Japanese painting and Japanese aesthetic.”