This hand-carved mulberry sculpture draws on the Japanese myth of Yama Uba, the mountain witch who embodies dualities—nurturer and devourer, beauty and decay. Encased in rough Urushi glaze pigmented with red ochre, its raw texture evokes the earthiness of Yama Uba’s forested domain and the violence of her transformative power. There is represented the real and expected relationship with my own mother and the dichotomy of gratitude and blame, guilt and resolution, the cycle of becoming a parent oneself and searching for a meaningful relationship in all the hurt.

‍

The brass button, marking the fissure of rupture, symbolises her paradoxical nature: a point of destruction that births something dark and unctuous, yet essential. Gold leaf traces the scar, reflecting the witch’s allure and the redemptive beauty of survival. Resonating deeply with the artist, this piece becomes an introspective vessel, intertwining myth, materiality, and the wounds of lived experience.