Artist Spotlight: Rieko Koga on finding hope in the future

You are not just a bystander to Rieko Koga’s Future Diary (2010), you get to be a participant. Draped in waves down the length of the Winterstoke Gallery,  a 15m length of white fabric is embroidered with questions that are directed at the viewer.

Some ask you things that have been on the minds of philosophers and romantics for centuries.  Who will you love? Will you be happy?

Others ask you to consider quiet, intimate moments. What will you have in your pocket? What song will you be singing?

As you walk along the length of the work, you realise that you are being asked to ponder on your future, a life not yet lived, and to contemplate things that you cannot possibly know. Are these rhetorical questions? That is up to you.

We asked Koga about why she chose to connect with the future:

When I made this work, in 2010, I was feeling anxious about my future. I can’t change my past, but I can create my own future, and I believed that it was up to me to change it. I made this artwork because I wanted to create a better future, and to have my own future diary.

I was 39 years old when I made this artwork, and by coincidence I embroidered 39 questions into my work. These questions are very simple, but sometimes it is difficult to answer them, and also the answers change each time - it depends on the situation and mood. I imagined a bright future and answered each question as I embroidered them.

I didn't want to make this piece just for myself, but for everyone. There were people around me who have been hurt or feel lonely. I wanted to give them hope and positive messages through this artwork.

I embroidered it in English, not in Japanese or French [Koga was born in Tokyo and now lives in Paris], because I hoped that it could be seen and understood by people all over the world, also from children to adults.

 

 

Can you tell us about why you have chosen textiles as your medium for this piece?

I work always with textile - the plain white cloth reminded me of the path to the future which spreads in front of me.

What I like about textile is that if we want to make it bigger, we can combine it together to make it infinitely bigger, if we want to make it smaller, just cut the fabric, and if we make a mistake in stitching, we can just unpick seams and sew them again.

The process of creating these textile artworks overlaps with life itself for me. I believe that we are free to create our own future however we want, and even if we fail, we can just try once more again and again. I think our life is like a white fabric.

 

How do you hope people will engage with your artwork? Can you tell us about previous responses and have you ever been surprised?

I would be happy if people could freely enjoy and feel the artwork. I hope visitors to the exhibition could imagine a brilliant future while answering each embroidered question.

The motifs embroidered on this artwork also remind me of the hopscotch I used to play as a child. Going back and forth, wondering whether to turn right or left, going round and round... this is similar to the path of life.

Whenever I feel uneasy, I always tell myself, “I have this Future Diary. It will protect me. I have a bright future, so I'll be fine."

If anyone is feeling sad or depressed, please remember this artwork. This piece is my Future Diary, and it is for you and for everyone.

About Rieko Koga

Rieko Koga is a Japanese visual artist who has been living in Paris since 2004. After finishing her studies in fashion, in Tokyo, then in Paris, she turned to the Arts. She expresses her universe with threads and needles. Embroidering according to her inspiration, Rieko improvises, creating works directly on the textile, without preparation, by letting herself be guided by the movement of her hands.

For Rieko, the act of sewing is a prayer, and she believes in the magical powers of her stitches. Her works are imbued with wishes buried within the stitching, wishes for all.

You can see Future Diary in Soft Power: Lives told through textile art until 10 August 2025.

 

Annual Art Pass: £18

Day ticket: £9.90 (inc. Donation)

Concessions: £5.45 (inc. Donation)

Students and under 18s: Free

 

Images: Alastair Brookes/KoLAB Studios