80 PUNCHMAGAZINE.COM {home & design} Perched high in an aerial lift, Harumo Sato paints bold designs and geometric shapes that weave a colorful story across a Google building in Sunnyvale. “I always wanted to be a ninja when I was younger,” admits the artist. “Climbing up to paint feels magical because at one point, I had a disabled body.” Through personal hardship and perseverance, Harumo’s murals, paintings and sculptures now grace buildings and collections across the Bay Area and U.S., revealing her salient message about culture, history and mon. “Everything has a soul,” she emphasizes. Harumo’s organic, dream-like images are as playful as they are steeped with meaning. Through her art, she gives voice to her historical observations— and lessons learned by overcoming major life challenges. Harumo’s trials began while working at an advertising agency in Tokyo. One day, the muscles in her right arm suddenly and inexplicably stopped functioning, leaving her without the use of her dominant hand. Doctors couldn’t find a cure. Unable to work, she returned to her hometown outside of Tokyo in Tochigi Prefecture for a our current moment. The daughter of two ancient civilization history teachers, Harumo grew up in Japan and spent her youth traveling to Greece, Egypt and Europe, where she visited many prehistoric sites. “There was no time to enjoy pizza in Italy, only to visit ruins in places like Palermo,” recalls Harumo. After extensive global travel with her parents, time spent living in France and month-long visits to Tunisia and Morocco, she began to notice similarities in early art from different civilizations. Many cultures seemed to have animistic images in comART bright side words by JENNIFER JORY ABOVE: Harumo and We Used To Be Held, her three-story mural for the Luggage Store Gallery. PHOTOGRAPHY: COURTESY OF LANNY NGUYEN
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