Life & Work with Maki Teshima

Today we’d like to introduce you to Maki Teshima. 

Hi Maki, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I am a botanical dye fiber artist. I create biodegradable mobiles and wall art made out of hand-dyed fabrics and yarns. I have always been inspired by two things: nature and color. This led to a career in the fashion industry where, as a textile surface designer, I gained deep experience in colors and patterns. Since I moved to the United States from Japan when I was 24 years old, my dream, which was becoming a professional artist, slowly changed. Gradually, my goal switched to having a successful career, getting paid better, and achieving higher titles as a textile designer. After 12 years or so, I started to feel pretty much tired of my life of running (I was literally running from home to the subway station to the office or schools to pick up kids all the time), rushing and competing. Then, I met natural dyeing through a class I took at the Textile Art Center. I just fell in love with the gorgeous natural colors from nuts, wood chips, leaves, flower petals, and plants. I have been creating products, artworks and sharing my knowledge of the art of natural dyeing since then. 5 years ago in 2017, I started a studio called “Tomorrow Is Always New”. I named it after a part of my favorite poem by Shuntaro Tanigawa, Time. “Yesterday and today are similar but they are not the same. And tomorrow is always new.” 

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Definitely, not. Lol. I met so many people telling me “You have a wonderful hobby!” It really hurts me because I am very serious about creating art with naturally dyed fabrics. 

Right before covid hit in 2020, after 2- 3 years I started my studio, many great opportunities started to come along. I was so energized and excited with new opportunities. And as you can imagine, most of them got canceled. Being the epicenter of covid in New York was terrifying. Seeing Asian people hurt all over this country was frightening. I encountered some ignorant people as well. I was just so scared, felt anxious and purely frightened. I certainly didn’t want to run away from beloved New York but I realized it was time. We moved to Denver because we fell in love with the big sunny blue sky. And the big space! I am still new to Denver community, especially to the art community. Luckily, I have met some heartwarming people, nice and cool people here. I have worked with ramen star and Miyako ramen spot to create Noren curtains. I participated some group shows at BRDG Project gallery. I am very excited to show my artworks more to people in Denver and share my love of natural dyeing. 

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I use natural materials to create work through dye, preserving transitory beauty in a durable, long-lasting form. The most beautiful things in nature, such as leaves, flowers, and plants, are fragile and can only exist in certain conditions. However, through natural dye their color can be refined and enriched to survive for long periods of time through dye on fabric. I also create biodegradable mobiles and wall art made out of hand-dyed fabrics and yarns. In this way, I explore the tension in nature between beauty and impermanence. There is inherently an interactive element in my art by asking viewers to consider the interplay between the impermanence of nature in its original form and how it is re-created through dyes, fabric, and mobiles. 

If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
I grew up in Osaka, Japan. Not in the city side, not in the countryside, very much in the suburbs right by a big highway. I remember there are many factories around my tiny house where I grew up such as seaweed, combu factory, chemical factory and ice cream corn factory… etc. Now that I think about the area, I still remember the particular smell from each of the factories. Houses were so closely together, so everybody knew everybody’s business. I was always naturally good at drawings. I really loved calligraphy and woodblock printing at school. Now that I think about it, I was lucky to have the art experiences at schools in Osaka. 

My mom told me the story when I was at Kindergarten, I got a special prize for my painting. The teacher told my mom that I have really good artistic eyes. But there were no artists in my family nor in my small community. My family wanted me to have a “normal” happy life. I had no idea you could become an artist until I went to college. I went to New York City when I was 19 years old with my first passport and with my friend. I worked to save up some money to get the cheapest ticket to get there and stay for 3 weeks. It really changed my whole perspective of my future. I fell in love with the energy and I LOVED ALL the museums I went to and I promised myself to move there someday. And it took me 10 years, but I did. 

Contact Info:

• Email: studio.tomorrowis@gmail.com
• Website: https://www.tomorrowisalwaysnew.com/
• Instagram: tomorrow_is_always_new

Image Credits
Yuka Oba