Kelima K
Conceptual Installation & Performance Artist, Textile Sculptor/Designer
My work emerges from the intersection of ancestral memory and contemporary transformation. Through conceptual narrative practice, involving performance, installation, and textile sculpture, I create a sense of the otherworldly, suspended between historical weight and present moment, on the threshold of other realities. Rooted in intentional practice and sensory presence, this work honors what has been lost, making transcendence possible. Kelima K
Exhibitions
The Museum of Fine Arts Boston, The Metropolitan Museum Of New York.
The Centre Pompidou, Paris, National Portrait Gallery - Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C.
Press
New York Times, Vogue Italia, ArtForum, Artnet
New Work
Developing a site-responsive performance installation centered on a moment of spiritual transcendence
from my ancestry: the death of two warriors at Koromogawa Castle in 1189. I am a direct descendant
of Minamoto no Yoshitsune, the supernatural Genji warrior who won the Gempei War rescuing Japan
from the brutal Heike regime, only to be condemned to death by his own brother.
His forced seppuku was performed with such intentionality and grace that it transformed political assassination
into an eternal act of human dignity. Outside, his friend, the great warrior monk Benkei stood guard on the bridge,
defeating over three hundred enemies before dying on his feet, arrow-riddled, wound-covered, standing tall.
Together, these simultaneous acts of sacrifice, courage and defiance became permanent imprints on Japanese consciousness. This piece demonstrates how a moment of transcendent courage deeply impacts us
nine hundred years later, and is a story that brings powerful transformation today. Through performance and
narrative, the work invites viewers to experience how ancient Japanese acts of honor, loyalty, and spiritual
resolve, can be the catalyst of healing ancient wounds that we all carry within us as personal barriers, within
the collective human historical trauma.
‘Connected’
What remains when there is no separation? As humans we are deeply connected, made of the same material. It was important that this fabric remain continuous and not separated.Fifty yards of pure silk, molded and knotted entirely by hand, during long, solitary nights, with no machines, no scissors, no zippers, and no assistance.The darkness and the solitude became part of the process.Twelve models wore this single, continuous garment simultaneously, at New York Fashion Week. One piece. Twelve bodies. No separation between them.Every movement, every step, every breath, traveled through the silk from one person to the next. What one person does ripples through everyone else.A living demonstration of the work's central concept: We are all made of the same material, we are connected.
'Nature's Phenomema Series'
Nature's Phenomema Series
The massive sculptures formed during the Monarch butterfly migration, atmospheric phenomena, botanical anomalies, are ephemeral moments that pierce reality. I am haunted by these experiences. The textile sculptures emerge from these strange, exquisite occurrences of nature, occurrences that hold the power to transport us to a mystical realm.
The Phenonema Series- photos: White Feather Kimono, Butterfly Migration and Cloud Dress
The New York Times, Artforum, Art Observed, Artnet
'Transformation Cloak Series'
This series draws from my Japanese heritage, exploring artisan kimonos through contemporary wearable sculpture, using textiles and the ancient Heian-era tradition of kimono color coordination.practiced by my ancestors. For this project I instinctively matched the colors of the Japanese textiles to the museum's interior palette and surrounding artworks, with the intention to create a harmonious, emotional, and powerful atmosphere. Later, I discovered the ancient Japanese aesthetic system: Kimonos were traditionally color-coordinated to harmonize with the seasons, as well as the emotions of the wearer. This was a dominant practice in the Heian court culture of my ancestry.
After conceptualizing, designing, handcrafting and writing original narrative text on the label,
I then christened this textile sculpture, 'Transformation Cloak'
My 'Transformation Cloak' Series has been exhibited at The Metropolitan Museum Of New York.
The Centre Pompidou, Paris, The Museum of Fine Arts Boston, The Smithsonian National Library, Washington D.C.
Kelima K
Conceptual Installation & Performance Artist, Textile Sculptor/Designer
Moving forward, all credit lines will reflect this authorship.
Historical credits will be noted as legacy documentation.
© K E L I M A K 2015- 2026 All Rights Reserved
Transformation Cloak series and associated text are copyrighted.