Megumi Ohata
Megumi Ohata is a London-based interdisciplinary and special effects artist of Japanese heritage with mixed Korean background. Renowned for innovative wearable sculptures using artificial skin imprinted with their own textures, Ohata earned an MA with Distinction from the Royal College of Art in 2023. Their work has been shown at Tate Modern, Cromwell Place, and HSBC HQ, and is held in the Adamovskiy Foundation collection. Ohata was a finalist for the 2024 Ingram Prize, a member of the Royal Society of Sculptors, and a Highly Commended Artist in the Winter 2025 Homiens Art Prize, marking their unique position in contemporary art.
In 2021, Ohata developed a method for creating artificial skin textiles embedded with their own skin texture, first showcased in a Haori jacket referencing Hyakkiyakou Emaki, a historic Japanese scroll depicting Yōkai folklore. This work explores cultural heritage and posthuman philosophy, examining the symbiosis between human and non-human entities. The Haori, as a wearable sculpture, transcends aesthetics, fostering embodied connection and self-acceptance. The installation includes casts of Ohata’s feet suspended like ghosts, symbolising struggles with child abuse, identity, and the sense of “no home.” It explores the body as an archive of memory, where trauma and heritage remain imprinted in skin and gesture. By merging folklore, personal history, and transformation, Ohata’s work challenges conventional boundaries and invites viewers to engage physically and emotionally, contemplating the layered complexity of identity, care, and the body’s role in shaping memory.
Project Gallery
