What was, what is, explores the area between presence and memory. using gyotaku, the traditional method of recording a fish’s body through direct contact, the works acknowledge the moment after stillness, where a life has ended yet remains alive in spirit. The Painted head extend what the print could not hold, not as restoration but as proof of life.

This series reflects how living beings are remembered through touch, image, and the instinct to preserve what has already passed. It acts as a reminder of how quickly something familiar can shift from living form to a recorded trace.