Naoko Mikami discusses her calligraphy piece titled "With Heaven’s Help," delving into the profound meaning behind it.
One big gamble
Nick: Behind you, I'm assuming is that one of your works?
Naoko: Can I talk about this a bit?
Nick: Please do, yeah.
Naoko: This is a piece consisting of four scrolls called With Heaven’s Help. I wanted to put all the scrolls here, but too bad, my wall is not big enough. Anyway, this character represents heaven. This whole piece in Japanese, kenkon’itteki, basically, it means putting everything on the line and one big gamble.
In life, there is always a moment when you face big risk, this kenkon’itteki moment. But this moment doesn't just appear out of nowhere. You have to work hard and prepare to know when to take that leap. When you run all you can and are ready to take the gamble, that's when you get help from above.
Nick: Yeah, that's true.
Naoko: And each character in the piece shows its own trend, and together, they create a powerful scroll. It's all about personal growth, working with your environment, and getting ready for the big challenges in life. I love this word. And I love this piece.