I have always been fascinated by how conceptions of beauty define desire and generate the building blocks of allure – the language of attraction. Like spoken or written language, beauty is shaped by common idioms and shared experiences that are the foundations of culture. In this way, it is more than just a description; it is a reflection of a greater whole, a visual representation of what is valued in a society. I became interested in looking at beauty through a different cultural lens. In 2007, I spent 7-months in Kyoto, Japan studying all aspects of of the kimono—from weaving and construction, to ceremonial function and historic meaning. The result was Floating World, a body of work in ceramic, bronze, rusted iron and cast glass.

Click here to read an essay about these work, which was originally published in Karen LaMonte Floating World