utte interview vol.

THE PAINTING SPREADS SMILE IN THE WORLD

RIE, an artist,
utte interview
The Painting spreads smile in the
world
October 2008
The Painting spreads smile in the world

2
 The Painting spreads smile in the world

This booklet is an interview originally

appeared in the website “utte” – creative
artworks shop – in which utte staff
interview and take photos, and write
articles, 2,000 – 2,500 words in Japanese,
to spread views of art in their lives.

“The Painting spreads smile in the world” is

an interview held in October, 2008 with
Ms. RIE. She expresses openly why she
would like to spread smiles in the world.
Let’ enjoy her words and comments. We
are very happy to hear your comments
directly to us.

Comments to: utte@utte.co.jp

Yoshifumi Go, a staff of utte

Sakurako Murayama, a staff of utte

3
 The Painting spreads smile in the world

RIE utte　website
http://www.utte.co.jp/joomla/content/view/816/54
/
utte website
www.utte.co.jp
RIE personal website
http://www.mongara-art.com/

4
 The Painting spreads smile in the world

RIE, a painter/an artist

Self introduction

In 2005, I visited Borneo, Indonesia for home-

stay.

The region was a habitat area living with wild

orangutans together. The residents made their
living by selling oils extracted from coco palm
trees. There are no convenience stores, asphalt
roads and traffic signals. Such common things in
Japan were nowhere to be found.

Bathing was bucketful of rain water stored by oil

drums. Electricity was by a power plant of its
own but the power generation was a hard work,
so everyone sleeps when sun sets, and gets up
when sun rises.

One day a girl of the home-stay house said to

me. "I want to go to Japan someday once. but as
my family is poor it could be a dream through my

5
 The Painting spreads smile in the world

life. so people coming to us like you are my

treasure. Thank you so much". She said smiling.

I couldn't stop tears with her saying. The

villagers thank every little thing and never forget
thankful minds like the girl. Being living in the
county favored economically, I complained a lot
and forgot giving thanks to people around me. It
was so shameful such a small-minded I was.　

Then I tried to focus on what I could do for the

world. Yes, I can paint pictures. I decided to keep
on painting. I can spread my smiles in the world.
It is the only one thing I can do for the people.
October 2006

6
 The Painting spreads smile in the world

RIE, Carrier

born in Osaka, Japan

graduated Kyoto Saga University of Arts in 2002
working holiday travel in Australia and Bali in
2004
home-stay travel in Malaysia and Borneo in 2005
decision was made during the travel to keep on
painting
wandering travel in Hawaii and Bali in 2006
started painting in Tokyo
one-person exhibition, "Present show" at golden
child cafe, Nagoya
one-person exhibition, "wall pictures" at BAR
TOTOTO, Nishi-Azabu
awarded the winner of Nikke pure Heart
illustration
participated in 2008 volvic "1L for 10L" project
exhibited pictures in a popular TV show "Oshare-
ism", Nippon Television Network.

7
 The Painting spreads smile in the world

The Painting spreads simile in

the world

She would like to spread smiles to the world

through her paintings.

Spreading smiles by her paintings, by acrylic or

watercolors. her paintings are filled with
smiles, chuckle and giggles. Lots of smiling
people, smiling mothers and children, smiling
houses and towns, smiling animals, fishes,
plants, forests and seas. The earth is also filled
by smiles by Ms. Rie, she is a "Smile" artist

RIE, an artist,
8
 The Painting spreads smile in the world

There are citizens who lost smiling faces. She

hopes to bring them to "Smile Republic" by an
airplane body with big smile paintings. Arriving
there, they laugh and laugh and laugh, and
then restore natural smiling faces. After
coming back to their homes, they spread
smiles all over the country. This is her dream.

It was a long-way around trip until she decided

to be an artist. One time she found her talent,
other time lost it in business world, and had
bad times to lose smiles from her face.

【at a library in the deep ocean】

She was an natural artist in her family. Her
father is an artist of abstract glass objet d'art
and mother is a dye designer. Grand-father is
an oil painter and grand-mother is a ceramic
artist it. So, majoring art or craft was very
natural for her. She majored modern craft and
studied coloring, design and ceramic art at a
high school. Among courses, she always got

9
 The Painting spreads smile in the world

the highest scores in free-style painting.

The teacher gave themes such as "walking in

the Space" for free-paintings to students. One
day the painting theme was "library in the
deep ocean." she painted people who were
exhibited in the deep ocean and fishes were
watching them. The teacher, who rarely
praises students, looked it and said.

"You have talent."

Then she loved to paint with free-expression

more than ever.

【Days of complaining】
She went to college and majored ceramic
course. After graduating she travelled in
Australia and Bali by working holiday visa.
Returning from the travel, she hoped to work
as a "bridge" between overseas and Japan. Not
thinking serious, she tried to be a reporter of a

10
 The Painting spreads smile in the world

popular TV program "Finding World's Mystery”.

She had an audition and passed it. She then
worked hard voice training and dancing among
applicants for actors and singers. But the
replacement of the reporter was scheduled
every three year or less. She dropped it.

She wondered what to do. All of her friend had

been working as “members of society.” she
followed them and became a sales staff for a
real-estate company. Working society was a
surprise for her. She thought she could not
keep on working. Much stress built up and she
complained something every day. Then she
quit the job and went to Borneo and stayed
with the family. It was 2005.

11
 The Painting spreads smile in the world

【things discovering in Borneo】

Common in the economic giant country like
convenience stores, asphalt roads, signals,
advertising boards, there were no such things
in Borneo. Everyone slept when sun set, and
got up when sun rose. Life was so
inconvenience compared to one of the
advanced countries. But one thing was

12
 The Painting spreads smile in the world

considerably different from Japan.

There were big smiles and thankful minds over

the island.

One day the girl of the home-stay house said

to me. "I want to go to Japan only once. As my
family is poor it could be a dream through my
life. But people come to us like you are my
treasure. Thank you so much. She said smiling.

After the moment, RIE returned to Japan and

took out the paintings in her high school days
and she said, "I have painting. I will paint the
picture filled with smiles. I was a wanderer who
had been complaining everything. I had so
small-mind". she noticed her stress sources.
she was so self-conscious and always cared
somebody's appreciations for her
achievements.

13
 The Painting spreads smile in the world

Then she finally understood her father's

abstract glass objet d'art. he didn't make them
for somebody's appreciations. he didn't even
make them for food. he just put out his

expression freely. She thought she has to reach

his stage someday. With smiles and thankful
words by the girl in Borneo, this is in her mind
like the deep warm ocean of the southern
hemisphere.

Clown triggerfish, Mongara-Kawahagi in

Japanese, goes his way in Great Barrier Reef in

14
 The Painting spreads smile in the world

Australia is a honorable being for Rie. The fish

swims calmly in the bottom of the warm ocean
while divers approach to them. She hopes to
be like a Mongara-Kawahagi.

【no longer she does not need to wander

but…】
she does not need to be away from herself
because she has now painting pictures. But
she went Korea in 2008. Because she felt
"Japan‐Korea relationship" lays somehow ill-
feeing between the two countries. She wants
to spread smiles both of them. Plus, this year
she wants to go to Africa and support to
construct wells and water systems through her
painting works.

In her dream of the airplane body-painting,

bound for the Smile Republic, both hands are
spreading to the wings, both legs are
spreading to the tail wings, and the big smile is
over the cockpit. She actually asked to paint

15
 The Painting spreads smile in the world

for an airline company. The staff of the

company replied.

"Do you know how many people who want to

be with you to Hawaii?"

It was a message they flied not for fun but for

business. The smile-less country like
contemporary Japan truly needs the paintings
by Smile Artist Rie.

16
The Painting spreads smile in the world

October 27, 2008

Words: Yoshifumi Go
Photos: Sakurako Murayama

17
The Painting spreads smile in the world

18