A setback sparked inspiration for Lauren Okano, the artist behind an exhibit of paintings called “Kintsugi Joy,” which runs Nov. 18 through Dec. 14 in the Courtyard Gallery at Downtown Art Center in the Chinatown Gateway Plaza.
“I came upon thinking about ʻKintsugi Joy,’ because kintsugi is the Japanese art of mending broken pottery with gold,” Okano told Aloha State Daily. “To me, it holds a deeper spiritual meaning as a metaphor for healing and resilience in the face of life’s challenges. It encourages imperfections and scars as a part of the story, rather than hiding or trying to erase them.”
Originally from New York City, Okano studied calligraphy and painting in Japan after college. It was there she met her husband, who is from Hawaiʻi, which eventually brought her to the Islands, where she has lived for more than 20 years.
Okano has not done kintsugi with pottery but she watched the process in Japan, she said. The idea worked its way into her recent paintings. The “Kintsugi Joy” exhibit features more than 20 paintings focused on the topic. About a dozen of those were done in just six to eight weeks leading up to the show, Okano added.
She got the idea for the series after she broke her toe. The injury left her unable to do things like walking and swimming, she said.
"Feel Good" is one of Lauren Okano's paintings on display in the exhibit "Kintsugi Joy" at Downtown Art Center. (Lauren Okano) 
"Kintsugi Wash" is part of Lauren Okano’s exhibit “Kintsugi Joy" at Downtown Art Center. (Lauren Okano) 
“Kintsugi Joy" runs Nov. 18 through Dec. 14 and includes this piece, "Kintsugi Wave." (Lauren Okano) 
"Teapot" is an oil on canvas work that is part of Lauren Okano's paintings on display in the exhibit "Kintsugi Joy" at Downtown Art Center. (Lauren Okano)
“It seems like such a small, little, tiny thing,” she said. “People have major medical stuff and all that. I broke my toe. And I really didn't think it was going to be a big deal until they did the surgery, at which time I was totally immobile. I was totally isolated. I had to stay in for like two months, lying down, not walking, not moving.”
Okano likes to swim every day, she said. She also paints and teaches.
“It was torture for me,” she said. “And I was getting all grouchy.”
While healing, she started to imagine a series of paintings, many of which are now part of “Kintsugi Joy.” The exhibit’s paintings range in size from 10-inch by 10-inch squares to a three-canvas piece called “Circle of Life,” which is about six feet across, she said.
“It just became like a metaphor for my healing and resilience in the face of what I was going through,” she said. “And also embracing imperfection and scars as part of the story.”
Okano teaches art at Hanahau‘oli School. She also instructs at Punahou School during the summer and Art Tent Studio on Saturdays.
As part of the “Kintsugi Joy” exhibit, there will be a First Friday Artist’s Reception from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 5. The Downtown Art Center is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Details.
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Katie Helland can be reached at katie@alohastatedaily.com.
