Hirofumi Fujiwara's bronze figures, pre-modeled in clay, stand and sit in the space that surrounds them, at rest in themselves, their bodies seeming alive, their faces delicate. 

These are his first bronze works, and in the development process it was especially important to Fujiwara to be involved in every step, to be able to give his figures as much love as his unique plastic pieces. Fujiwara applied the light gray patina of each bronze himself - a painterly process that makes each of the figures look different in nuances.

Fujiwara's sculptures, Earth and Wind, are enthusiasts; they bear witness to a romantic longing for the unattainable, they move between worlds. Their contemplative gaze directed into the indefinite, they carry references of Japanese as well as European-Western culture. They seem youthful and yet ageless, androgynous and detached from any stereotypes - isolated from this world, yet anchored in the moment, in being so.

In our ever faster moving, ever modification-oriented society, Fujiwara's earth and wind embody both longing and ideal.

Miriam Schwarz

Hirofumi Fujiwara is inspired by the diversity of people he encounters in his everyday life. When observing these multifaceted personalities, however, the artist does not so much claim to reproduce them in detail. Rather, he is on the lookout for details of the many, diverse people you collect for his artistic projects. The collection of different character traits and personality traits that characterize each person individually and can be received in a variety of ways from different perspectives, then serve him as a catalog of motifs for his works. Thus, he uses the observations to create equally individual figures. Each of the naturalistic sculptures made of clay and plastic differs from the others in small details and is therefore unique in two respects.
Hirofumi Fujiwara describes the creation process of his figures as a chain of coincidental moments. Since all he has left are his memories of what he has seen, the artist allows himself to be guided by the elaborate working process itself. At the beginning of each sculpture, there is only a rough idea. Where the creative journey will lead him is completely unclear. Every step of the work, every decision for or against the expression of a figure element influences the steps that follow.
Conceptual guideline and a special concern of the artist is the possibility of a multitude of interpretative approaches. Just as with the human being himself, the figures are to remain unfathomable to a certain extent. The complex and mysterious nature of each person is what motivates Hirofumi Fujiwara to create his figurative works. This aspect also relates to the viewer: as different as the recipients are, they will recognize just as many, different figures, construct diverse stories, and make countless interpretations. In doing so, Hirofumi Fujiwara thematizes the coexistence and opposition of inner and outer qualities. Even if the inside of a rigid, lifeless figure seems unfathomable, it is all the more exciting to develop the outside of the sculptures into a story, and to do so completely independently and detached from the artist's ideas.
In his latest project Hirofumi Fujiwara deals with the theme "Utopia". These sculptures are not so much models of man in the future, rather he creates figures of a parallel world. In contrast to his earlier works, the sculptures in this series are united by the element of concealment. This aspect of mystery is implemented through the use of transparent walls, which are constructed around the figures like a protective wall. Only upon closer inspection can one guess the essence of each individual figure behind Plexiglas, silicone drops, or straws.

Elisa Hornacek