Japanese calligraphy inspired Seiko Hoashi's latest exhibition in the Ballarat Art Gallery Backspace

Ballarat resident Seiko Hoashi's latest exhibition in the Backspace Gallery is inspired by traditional calligraphy strokes.

Each section of the exhibition takes inspiration from a different form of literature and some pieces include words or characters from the original texts.

After living in Australia for over 20 years she said this helps her connect to Japan.

The work incorporates Japanese hiragana and tried to convey feminine zen energy, Ms Hoashi said she wanted to display the beauty of the characters.

"Women created the lettering 1000 years ago," she said.

"In that era women expanded and established the culture."

While the words included are no longer legible now they have become a part of Ms Hoashi's work, she said she hopes they act as an introduction to both the original inspiration and also more broadly to Japanese culture especially after emigrating in 1994.

"Because I live here [in Australia] I have to think more about my identity and think about Japanese culture and aesthetic," she said.

READ MORE: Cate Kennedy's 'Return' to share optimism in CresFest Courthouse Conversations

Ms Hoashi comes from an art background, originally studying Western calligraphy before going on to study graphic design ten years ago at Federation University in Ballarat.

The mother of two said her previous study of western calligraphy is what drew her to the style of artwork she created for the exhibition.

Ms Hoashi said the two styles, west and east calligraphy, are very different with the western style placing a focus on symmetry and precision.

She sought out the fluid Japanese style again.

"It makes me feel more free, I feel like I am expressing myself," she said.

"It has my identity and has my experiences."

IN THE NEWS:

The exhibition was created at Ms Hoashi's home and took the better part of last year to put together.

She said most of the work is in the planning stages before anything makes it to the canvas.

Once she is ready to pick up a brush, one piece of work could be completed in a day. Mostly she works on one item at a time.

"Sometimes it is better to do it quickly, to show the energy and speed," Ms Hoashi said.

While there is pre-planning that goes into the work, she said there is also some improvisation involved, which helps keep the freeing feeling while creating.

Ms Hoashi's exhivition Epigraph will be on display at the Ballarat Art Gallery until Sunday May 7.

Have you signed up to The Courier's variety of news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in Ballarat.