Interview with Kazuki Taguchi by Johanna Baumgart.
Published on 27 JUN 2025.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and tell us something about your artistic background?
My name is Kazuki Taguchi. I create artworks using handmade paper, inspired by traditional Japanese papermaking techniques.
What are themes or questions do you generally deal with in your artistic work?
I explore themes of impermanence, spatial emptiness and bodily perception. My installations are made from handmade paper using local plant fibers, shaped into light sculptures that dissolve and reform, highlighting transience and sustainability. I’m also deeply interested in how viewers experience space and how their physical presence becomes part of the artwork. Influenced by Japanese aesthetics and Zen Buddhism, I often question dualities such as figure/background, object/viewer, and presence/absence.
What attracted you to take part in the FOOTNOTES project?
Starting this September, I’m planning to move to the state of NRW and begin working independently as an artist based there. Through this project, I hope to build many new connections.
What is your contribution to FOOTNOTES?
It is a lampshade made from handmade paper created from grass. The lamps will be scattered across the floor, summoning energy from the ground in the form of art.
How did you approach the topic of “FOOTNOTES” and how does your work relate to it?
The earth is the foundation that supports everything. All things return to the soil, and all life is born from it. By using wild grasses that grow from the ground and emitting light from the earth, I express the memory of the land itself.
How do you experience city life (in Bremen)?
This will be my first time visiting Bremen, and I’m really looking forward to it.
What do you think about Bremen’s Domshof as an exhibition venue?
I’ve seen it in photos — it seems like a historically rich place, and I think it’s a wonderful setting for artistic activity.
What kind of audience do you hope for?
Personally, I would be most happy if curators or people working in cultural fields visit, and if this leads to new opportunities for future work.
What do you think about presenting art in public space?
I think it’s a great idea. What I’d like to aim for in the future is to hold events not only in places where people naturally gather, but in overlooked or less-visited locations — using the power of art to invite people to discover new places.