June Sekiguchi | The Geometry of Resilience

April 3 - May 24, 2025

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In The Geometry of Resilience, June Sekiguchi presents intricate, modular sculptures and immersive installations inspired by the radiating symmetry of oceanic life and microorganisms. Sekiguchi’s mandala-like structures offer a poetic reflection on our current political and environmental challenges, highlighting how natural systems recover from disturbances and adapt to changes in ecosystems. This new body of work was shaped by Sekiguchi’s experiences at the Willapa Bay (2022) and Vashon (2023) Artist Residencies. Tide pools, teeming with marine animals, sparked a fascination with the balance between organic and geometric. Inspired by the ways that marine creatures’ forms, while delicate, have evolved to be resilient despite ever-changing conditions, the exhibition embodies Sekiguchi’s response to current political and environmental challenges.
June Sekiguchi is a Tacoma-based sculptor and installation artist who uses pattern to explore cultural identity and the human condition. Born in Fayetteville, Arkansas during the Civil Rights era, Sekiguchi was among few Asian families in the region, an experience that shaped her perspective on identity and belonging. More recently, her work has been influenced by artist residencies in Cambodia, Laos, Willapa Bay, and Vashon Island.
Utilizing a scroll-saw as her primary tool, Sekiguchi creates intricate forms from Medium Density Fiberboard (MDF) that engage both space and viewer. Her public artworks are featured at SeaTac Airport, Glacier Middle School in Buckley, WA, and Clinton National Airport in Little Rock, AR, with upcoming installations in Seattle’s Central District, Redmond, WA, and Portland, OR. Press: International Examiner , Northwest Designer Craftartists , NW Asian Weekly

"I create pattern-based sculptures, public art, and immersive installations that explore narrative through metaphor rather than literal depiction. This body of work—shaped by my experiences at the Willapa Bay (2022) and Vashon (2023) Artist Residencies—physically embodies my responses to today’s political and environmental challenges. At Willapa Bay, a visit to Beard’s Hollow at Cape Disappointment, with its tide pools teeming with sea anemones, barnacles, and starfish, and other marine sessile creatures, sparked my fascination with the natural patterns of immobile marine life. The coastal atmosphere at Vashon allowed me to deepen this exploration, translating nature’s quiet resilience into my art. My work is often modular and reconfigurable, integrating sound and light to create site-specific, immersive experiences. I work primarily with Medium Density Fiberboard (MDF), an engineered wood recycled from sawdust. Each cut, initiated by a carefully drilled pilot hole, is a labor-intensive, meditative act that transforms a humble material into intricate, organic patterns, celebrating resourcefulness and creative repurposing. Many sculptures in this show are radiating forms, a continuation of my interest in mandalas as a healing, spiritual, meditative tool. I have combined the individual pieces into a larger, flowing installation with varying depths and layers. Inspired by the natural symmetry of sessile tidepool creatures and the enduring strength suggested by Ernst Haeckel’s drawings of radiolarians, I explore how even the most delicate forms can embody quiet resilience in an ever-changing world. During the difficult time we have all experienced with the global pandemic and political divisiveness, my hope for us is Ganbatte, a Japanese word for stick-to-it-ness, resilience, and perseverance, using radiolarians as a metaphor for this concept. Their evolved ability to thrive amid ever-changing marine conditions embodies a quiet resilience that mirrors the enduring spirit I strive to capture in my work. As I made the art for this show and processed its meaning, I realized I was focusing on my own resilience, and the Ganbatte that I wish for young people and their future." ~ June Sekiguchi