Size:
height: 40 inches
width: 30inches
cranes: 1/4" to 3” high

Materials:
gold foil paper cranes
acrylic paint
canvas

Description:
KINTSUGI: A Japanese art form used to mend broken pottery with real gold highlighting and appreciating the beauty of its damage instead of hiding it.

My intention for ArtPrize10 was to create three miniature origami mobiles but an unexpected thing happened in late April that caused me to set aside the pieces I was already working on and start a brand new entry mid-summer.

A test, for an unrelated health issue, revealed that I have inoperable, bilateral, thalamic, grade 2, gliomas (aka early stage brain tumors on both sides of the deep part of my brain). There was shock, sadness, and fear quickly followed by gratitude for the early warning and a call to action.

I realized to heal my body I would need to change my life in drastic (but good) ways. I made the decision to adopt a macrobiotic diet and lifestyle in April of 2018 to speed along the reversal of the gliomas/tumors and make them go away. I’m also in the midst of digging deeper than ever before to deal with emotional pain that I have knowingly allowed to cause unending unhappiness and stress in my life for far too many years.

Creating this “Kintsugi Heart” was cathartic and part of my healing endeavor. It is also for you for I know you too have endured many heartbreaks. We always have a choice to try to ignore pain or to face, feel, process, and learn from it. Whether revisiting pain from the past or facing more in the future I hope we can remember that hardships always create opportunities for growth and for beauty within us to emerge.

Health updates are shared at www.StacieTamaki.Blogspot.com