Maki Okamoto is an applied artist living and working in Sweden. She explores the fields of corpus and contemporary jewellery with a sculptural approach. Her interest lies in creating objects that interact with the user. By transforming daily objects such as a fork or a spoon, she challenges the user to experience these pieces from a very different perspective.
What was the inspiration for your Steinbeisser pieces?
I was inspired by a bunch of old cutlery that lay on my working bench. They looked like something more than just utensils, just like how looking at a familiar alphabet character for a long time can make it look weird and exotic.
Describe your work in 3 words!
Borderless functional objects.
What kind of materials do you use and where do you get them from?
I mostly use old nickel silver cutlery from antique shops in Stockholm. Sometimes I use cutlery that I have inherited from my husband’s grandmother. I also work with cutlery that come from the customers’ own family.
Which conscious lifestyle choices are you making and are you considering any new ones?
I aim to show respect for all living beings, food, material and makers. To be thankful for all the chances and things I get. I hope this thought in our daily life will affect my kids in a positive way.
What have you rebelled against in the past and what are you rebelling against now?
In my work I often question the main functions of an object. I try to reveal other meanings and functions in the object. In that way I am rebelling against the normative reading of objects in my surrounding.