Creators Vancouver:
Interviewed by “Creators Vancouver” online Magazine
Creators Vancouver profiles professional artists and designers across a broad range of fields
Read more about the interview with Sleepless Kao by Creators Vancouver
Winterruption:
Open Air Illustration for Winterruption Festival on Granville Island by Sleepless Kao February 17-19, 2017
Granville Island presents the 12th Winterruption Festival. This mid-winter celebration of Vancouver culture and arts features live music, theatre, dance and street performance plus art, film, crafts, family activities and, of course, great food!
Look out for the 2017 festival poster featuring Kao’s cute illustration!
more info about Winterruption
love art:
An Exhibition of New Works by Sleepless Kao & Jodi Sam
At Branches & Knots
February 10-28, 2017
Opening Reception Friday,
February 10th, 2017, 6PM – 9PM
This exhibition premiers Sleepless Kao’s original paintings for her upcoming projects, and her new artwork
About Branches & Knots
A fashion & lifestyle retailer carrying unique items from Japan, Europe and Vancouver in the trendy area of Kitsilano, Vancouver
The Book Wars:
Interviewed by The Book Wars
Read more about Interview Sleepless Kao by The Book Wars
PAPER-YA:
Snapshot interview with a favorite local artist, Kaori from Sleepless Kao!
Interviewed by “paper-ya”
Drawing Night & Day:
An Exhibition of New Works by Sleepless Kao & Lisa Cinar
At Visual Space May 22 – 24, 2014
Opening Reception
Thursday, May 22, 2014 6pm – 9pm
The exhibition premiers original paintings from Kao’s upcoming children’s book Emily and the Mighty Om . Featuring more than 40 works includes digital prints and limited edition silkscreen prints. This exhibition offers an opportunity to experience the world of childlike playfulness and kawaii (cute in Japanese).
“Little creatures pop out of my brain around midnight and tell me, “play with me”. They demand more room, so I put them onto large canvases. Other creatures do not stop moving, so I make a short animation of them.”
– Sleepless Kao
Read more about Exhibition
Opening reception at CHOTTO MOTTO:
なんとなんと、池田学くんが来てくれましたよ
展覧会オープニングはたくさんの人に来て頂き、たのしい時間を過ごすことができました
遠くにいて来て頂けなかった方も、応援メールや電話、ありがとうございました
Blimギャラリーで１２月２９日までやっていますので、近くにおいでの際はぜひ立ち寄ってみて下さい
CHOTTO MOTTO:
An Exhibition of New Works by Sleepless Kao At Blim, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Opening: Friday, December 2nd. 8:00pm -11:00pm
Show Runs December 2 – 29, 2011
Little creatures pop out of Kao’s brain around midnight and tell her, “more, more…”. They demand more room, so she puts them onto large canvases. Other creatures do not stop moving, so she makes a short animation of them. Come to BLIM to see Kao’s work
Enjoy chotto mottoholiday gifts by Kao, including prints, dolls, lucky-charms, and a little more
“A single chotto means little, but Japanese often say “chotto, chotto” which asks for someone’s attention, like “hey you!” Motto means more, and we often say “motto motto” meaning “yes, yes, more please”. If I was telling a story and I paused, you might say “motto motto”, asking me to continue with my story. Chotto motto together is an odd combination because they are opposites; I like the feeling of this odd pairing. There is a cultural difference between Japan and Canada which I still struggle with. Some aspects of traditional Japanese culture are passive-aggressive by Western standards, but they come from a pure/good intention. Japanese do not like to expose aggression, so we calmly speak in an indirect fashion. In relation to my show, I am saying in a polite way, “here I am, look what I have done”, but I am trying to be modest at the same time”
-from Interviewed by The Province
Cute to kill
Screening Sleepless Kao’s short animation at VIVO Media Arts Center, Vancouver, BC
Friday October 28 | 8 – 11 PM | $12/10 | @ VIVO (Main St. × 4th Ave.)
“Cutie no Yume” (cutie’s dream) 5min.18sec.
Everyone called her “Cutie”
She was sometimes stressed about being “Cutie”. She daydreamed to calm down at the end of the day
This describes Japanese girls very well. They often look very cute, polite, and harmless, but inside their bodies, they have as many passionate and evil thoughts as any norman person
The Concept of Kawaii:
Some people call my art kawaii; Japanese for ‘cute’. I would have to agree, and I think cute things can be for all ages
Kawaii is a big subject. It is as meaningful as any contemporary concept. It is an outside shell, yet when done with precision and purity, contains Pure Love
Little creatures pop out of Kao’s brain around midnight. Recently, they demanded Kao to give them more room, so she put them up onto large canvases. Other creatures would not stop moving, so she made a short animation with them. Come to VIVO to see Kao’s work
Giant Robot
Sleepless Kao participated GR show
Year of the Rabbit Show, Giant Robot, Los Angeles, CA, 2011
Printed Matter 8, Giant Robot, New York, NY, 2010
Giant Robot Biennale 2, Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles, CA, 2009
GR Anniversary Show, Giant Robot, San Francisco, CA, 2009
Free to a Good Home, Giant Robot, Los Angeles, CA, 2009
Year of the OX Show, Giant Robot, Los Angeles, CA, 2009
Tree Show, Giant Robot, San Francisco, CA, 2008
Game Over, Giant Robot, San Francisco, CA, 2008
Year of the Rat Show, Giant Robot, Los Angeles, CA, 2008
About GR:
Giant Robot Store established in 2001 features art/Asian Pop Culture products
GR2 Gallery features art exhibitions by notable artists like Katsuya Terada, Luke Chueh, David Choe, Mari Inukai, Deth P Sun, Rob Sato, Ako Castuera, Sean Chao, Yoskay Yamamoto, Uglydoll, and countless others