2025 Mineo Mizuno: Homage to Nature - Celebrates the Beauty of Wood in its Natural State & Emphasizes Reusable & Renewable Resource (Video)NEW

Mineo Mizuno: Homage to Nature. This site-specific work explores the fragility of the Earth’s ecosystem, as well as the destruction of the forest and its potential for regeneration. The sculpture celebrates the beauty of wood in its natural state and emphasizes its potential as a reusable and renewable resource.

California-based Japanese American artist Mineo Mizuno’s site-specific sculpture, titled Homage to Nature, is crafted from fallen timber gathered in the forests of the Sierra Nevada, where the artist lives and works. Views of the San Gabriel Mountains in the background frame the work.

The sculpture explores the fragility of the Earth’s ecosystem, as well as the destruction of the forest and its potential for regeneration. Homage to Nature celebrates the beauty of wood in its natural state and emphasizes its potential as a reusable and renewable resource. Using yakisugi (shou sugi), a traditional Japanese method of wood preservation known in the West as burnt timber cladding, the charred surfaces of the reclaimed timbers speak to fire’s destructive potential, while the mottled glazes on the ceramic teardrops reference its transformative power. As a companion and response to the sculpture, a “fire landscape” is planted near the sculpture to mimic new growth that occurs naturally after a fire.

This new sculpture marks the culmination of a series of installations by the artist designed to reflect on The Huntington’s collections and link the gardens and art galleries.

Exhibition Dates
May 25 - May 25, 2029

About Mineo Mizuno
(American, b. Japan, 1944) draws inspiration from the wilderness of the Sierra Nevada foothills in Northern California, where he has lived and worked since 2016. Mizuno is widely known for his technical mastery of the ceramic medium, and his most recent works involve wood from fallen trees, exploring ideas of life, renewal, and the intertwined future of humans and nature. Mizuno studied ceramics at the Chouinard Art Institute in Los Angeles from 1966 to 1968. He established his studio in 1978, and in 1981, he received a National Endowment for the Arts Award. Shown throughout the United States and Japan, his work is included in the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago; Crocker Art Museum; The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens; Long Beach Museum of Art; Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Renwick Gallery; Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; Palm Springs Art Museum; and Smithsonian Institution.

About The Huntington
The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens is a cultural and educational institution of global significance. Building on Henry E. and Arabella Huntington’s renowned collections, The Huntington supports research and promotes education in the arts, humanities, and botanical science through the growth and preservation of its collections; the development of a community of scholars, school programs, and partnerships; and the display and interpretation of its extraordinary resources for diverse audiences. The Huntington is located at 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, California, 12 miles from downtown Los Angeles. Visitor information: huntington.org.

Contacts
Jessica McCormack, 323-497-9308, [email protected]
Thea M. Page, 626-405-2260, [email protected]