Yanagi Miwa

Born in Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture in 1967, resides in Kyoto. Artist and theater director. Yanagi has staged numerous exhibitions in Japan and elsewhere since her first solo outing in 1993, which featured works on the theme of elevator girls. Represented Japan at the 53rd Venice Biennale in 2009. Began working in theater in 2011, staging pieces dealing with the dawn of modern art, at art museums and theaters, including a tour of North America. In 2019 Yanagi toured museums with her exhibition Myth Machines, and in 2021 she wrote and directed Taiwanese Opera: Aphrodite Orchid. Since 2016 she has been touring outdoor theater using a vehicle custom-built in Taiwan, including undertaking a performance on water in the Hyogotsu district of Kobe. Recent ventures include the launch of “YUYAKU,” a project to research traces of the monk Ippen Shonin, founder of the Jishu sect, and his performances.