Ao Miyasaka

Born in 2000 in Matsumoto, Nagano, Japan, she is a contemporary artist based in Shinjuku, Tokyo.

In 2021, she held her first solo exhibition of paintings at GALLERY ROJI in Omotesando. Through subsequent studies of textile production regions and traditional culture across Japan, her practice evolved toward the field of textile art.

Based in Japan, she has presented exhibitions and shows in New York and various Asian countries, and is scheduled to present her 1st Collection at New York Fashion Week on February 15, 2026.

In her creative process, she personally visits every production site related to the textiles and jewelry used in her works, engaging in direct dialogue with artisans and collaborators throughout the making of each piece.

Her 1st Collection centers on the theme of redefining perspectives on physical beauty.

While artists around the world increasingly express the body as a form of empowerment, she felt a strong need to update the prevailing “gaze” toward bodily expression in contemporary Japan, which became the driving force behind this collection.

She has long experienced discomfort with the significant gap between the values held by creators and those held by viewers regarding the body—particularly when such gaps result in the devaluation of women’s physical presence or distort the artist’s true intent.

These misalignments extend beyond the realms of entertainment and art. They transcend gender boundaries and manifest in everyday life as sexual harassment, groping, and even the careless and harmful language directed at victims.

For her, updating the “gaze” is not a matter of preference or idealism—not something that would be nice to achieve—but an inevitable and necessary shift in values within contemporary society.

Through the study of traditional culture and advanced technologies, she seeks to evolve kimono-based and Edo-period sensibilities into contemporary forms, while simultaneously attempting to transform the way bodies are seen, perceived, and understood.