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
Current work
I am developing a site-responsive performance installation exploring a pivotal moment in my ancestral past: a battle that changed the course of history. Although my ancestors were victorious, they lost what they could not recover; innocence and peace.
The work centers on the erasure of the courageous women of this battle, who chose death over capture, and my ancestor. As a young warrior, shaken by witnessing their demise and eloquent resistance, tried to save them. Through haunting performance, richly hued textile installation, and provocative narrative, this piece reclaims silenced voices and asks what it means to witness, and be witnessed, across centuries.
'CONNECTED'
‘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.
WHITE FEATHER KIMONO
t
My work emerges from the intersection of ancestral memory and contemporary transformation. Through textile sculpture and performance installation, I create pieces that are otherworldly in their liminality, suspended between historical weight and present moment, yet beautiful in their material intelligence and sensory presence. This paradox is the point: when we honor what has been lost or transformed through unique, exquisite material practice, something transcendent becomes possible.
From my 'Phenonema' Collection, created forArtist Terence Koh.
The New York Times, Artforum, Art Observed, Artnet
TRANSFORMATION CLOAK
This series explores ancestral artisan kimonos through contemporary wearable sculpture, using Japanese textilesand the ancient Heian-era tradition of kimono color coordination.practiced by my ancestors, which I discovered later. 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 Heian court culture.
After designing, conceptualizing, handcrafting and handwriting original narrative text on the label,
I christened this textile sculpture as the: 'Transformation Cloak'
The '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.
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.