The Artist as Traveller/The Traveller as Artist

Petite only in stature, Mika Murakami, left her native Tokyo 10 years ago to travel. She had studied art and worked in different art-related jobs, including participating in the organization of Tokyo's "Art Market Festival" (1993-95), but all along she knew that her real vocation was travelling. She went to India in 1990. That was fascinating and soon what she calls her "curiosity" took her to Africa for an extended tour through Kenya, Tanzania, Gambia, Mali and Senegal. In this latter country she was surprised to find that, thanks to the artistic milieu created by the French Cultural Center, she was actually able not only to paint but to exhibit and sell her paintings. "I participated in the Dakar Bienalle," says Mika. "I must admit I was surprised."

She landed in Spain in 1997. Asked "Why Spain?" she replies with gentle irony. "That's the problem with writing things; you always have to give an excuse. The truth is I can't remember my excuse for coming to Spain..." Her three years in Spain (except for a trip to Mexico...) Mika has devoted primarily to etching a discipline that, she confesses, has captivated her.

What is all this travelling about? Mika says, "It's not just going from place to place. To me travel represents an opportunity to get to know other cultures and to live inside of them. I'm particularly attracted to the Third World, where all of life's sensations are closer to the surface, whether it's the wind in the morning, the seaside in the evening or the everyday dealings with the people around me. I need that, and keep going back to it, in one place or another."

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