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study for caryatid / Mari Katayama


  • Atelier Jolie 57 Great Jones street Brooklyn, NY, 11201 United States (map)

The Invisible Dog and Atelier Jolie are thrilled to present a series of works by Mari Katayama and to host a talk with the artist and moderated by Pauline Vermare, Phillip and Edith Leonian Curator of Photography, Brooklyn Museum.

Exhibition is free admission
Talk is free admission with RSVP


Mari Katayama’s artistic practice begins with intricately hand-sewn fabric-based objects and expands across photography, video, and activist art projects.

Deeply autobiographical yet universally resonant, her work invites reflection on how society imposes fixed roles and forms upon individuals—defining the boundaries between “you” and “I,” and shaping notions of what is considered “correct.”

The hand-sewn objects that appear in her self-portraits continually shift in form and meaning, emerging as symbols of cyclical life and interconnected existence. The mirrored stage composed for her tree of life series blurs distinctions between ceiling and floor, reality and reflection. Everything exists in relation—mutually influencing one another, as opposites coexist and give rise to new forms. Like a mirror reflecting the world, Katayama’s practice is a ceaseless act of transformation.

Using a medium format film camera, she captures time itself in a single shutter release—unassisted by multiple exposures nor digital editing. Her motto is always to shoot by herself, using a remote release or timer. This act suggests the delicate tension between taking and being taken.

Her study for caryatid series draws inspiration from the caryatids of ancient Greek and Roman architecture—sculpted figures that resolutely and elegantly support architectural façades while bridging the earth and the sky. Fascinated by these forms since childhood, Katayama translates her own sense of disconnection from the ground into images of herself standing with her prosthetic legs, embodying both levitation and rootedness.

How do we survive in a multilayered society while holding diverse roles in different communities? While upholding the challenges and labels that fall alongside hopes and opportunities, Katayama defines making everyday life as the act of standing firmly on one’s own ground. It is a declaration of intent—a quiet yet powerful gesture toward sustaining and protecting the future.


MARI KATAYAMA (b.1987, Saitama; raised in Gunma) is a Japanese multimedia artist whose practice spans photography, textiles, paintings, and beyond. She is the founder of the High Heel Project, a long-term artistic and activist initiative advocating “freedom of choice” for all, regardless of physical ability.

Her work has been exhibited internationally, including at the Rencontres d’Arles (2024), Foto Arsenal Wien (2023), the MEP - Maison Européenne de la Photographie (2021), and Venice Biennale (2019). Her pieces are held in major public and private collections such as the MEP, Tate Modern, CNAP - Centre national des arts plastiques, and Fondation Francès.

Katayama’s work has been on view at Tate Modern as part of the permanent collection display Performer and Participant for over three years, until early 2026. From November 15, 2025, her works from the tree of life series will be displayed at Victoria and Albert Museum in London, as commissioned and newly acquired work, for about two years. A new artist’s book Synthesis (SPBH Editions / MACK) was published in September 2025.

Website
Instagram


© Mari Katayama. Courtesy of Galerie Suzanne Tarasieve, Paris, Yutaka Kikutake Gallery, and Mari Katayama Studio.

tree of life #004, #011, #012, #013, #017, and #018 were commissioned by the V&A Parasol Foundation Women in Photography project with support from the Parasol Foundation Trust.


Location
Atelier Jolie
47 Great Jones Street
New York, NY, 10012

Admission:

Exhibition
Tuesday Novembrer 4 to Saturday November 8, 2025
11am - 6pm
Free Admission

Talk
Friday November 7, 2025
6pm
Duration 1 hour followed by signature with the author
Free Admission with RSVP