Umico Niwa ‘Daphne, Act Two’

“I recently watched the film Farewell My Concubine and was reminded of sitting in a cantonese opera house in the countryside of Hong Kong nearly a decade ago. Women were played by men and allowed on stage, celebrated even, in the context of make believe, as play. It resonated with me deeply to the point I was holding back tears, for they were magnificent, exuberant, glorious, so very camp.

It reminded me of attending Shakespeare in the Gardens as a wee tyke, and being absolutely enamored by the puffy shoulders, the frills and ridges along the velvety outfits with their lace, so much lace. It floored me to my core to witness Juliet being played by a young man, as Shakespeare himself intended it. This, that and the theater of my home, Kabuki, with its all male cast kept me up at night.” — Umico Niwa


T293 is pleased to present ‘Daphne, Act Two’, an exhibition of new work by Umico Niwa. The installation unfolds across two rooms, each functioning as an act in an evolving story. The first room, “Act One”, gathers early Daphnes—sculptural, anthropomorphic figures made of cast pewter and organic materials—to introduce the cast to the audience. The second room, “Act Two”, explores the dramaturgy between these characters presented within a carefully constructed mise-en-scène.

Within this setting, the Daphnes function as characters in a play, frozen mid‑scene. Each one has been adorned, or rather “costumed” with, foraged materials that suggest gestures, moods and emotional states. Rooted in memories of friends, family and personal experience, these figures appear as fragments of a larger, unseen personal narrative. 

Formally, the installation takes shape as a theatrical environment, echoing the artist’s memories of open-air Shakespeare in gardens, where flamboyant costumes, lighting, staging, and characters  left a lasting imprint. The exhibition draws on the many meanings of “play”: from competitive games and theatrical performances, to activities pursued strictly for pleasure, such as the consensual power dynamics of BDSM. Presented upon sculpted stages, the Daphnes reveal the theatrical nature of identity, where gender and sexuality are explored performatively.

The opening reception will be accompanied by an artist talk coinciding with the publication of the book, Daphne.