Significance of Existence　　　　2004
				photo: MARUYAMA Tokio
		plaster hands, bed, mirror, former foundry L.900cm, W.175cm, H.180 cm Kawaguchi Art Factory / Kawaguchi, Saitama [BETWEEN ECO & EGO 2004 - Act.4] International Art Project
		I sometimes imagine viewing the world around me through a bird's eye. I see people small as ants going about their daily lives, individuals living out their Earthly dreams and desires. I feel affection for them all, the strong and the weak. At the same time, I see their universal aspects, that they are all members of the human race, all living organisms. This spring, my father-in-law passed away. In his long fierce struggle with disease, both his physical and mental functions were stripped away one after another, as if to slowly lay bare his essential humanity. Watching his dignified progress toward death I found myself asking, "What really makes us human?"

Copyright (c) MARUYAMA Yoshiko, All rights reserved.