Hikari Shimoda
There was an announcement that works by the Nagano-born artist Hikari Shimoda would go on sale on October 15, 2017 at 22:00 (EST) — 11:00 on the 16th, Japan time — so I was on standby. The information was posted from time to time mainly on Instagram and on her official site, so I kept an eye on it.
The sale was held on “apportfolio,” a Hong Kong art-sales site, with a limited run of “300.” Shipping was offered worldwide, and given her current popularity I figured the competition would be fierce, so I stood by right on time.
Sale Opens @ 11:00, October 16, 2017
Right on schedule, I access the site. B-but…
Before I even knew what was happening, the 「SOLD OUT」 mark had appeared… It’s sold out. Yep, total defeat!
Sold Out in One Minute
Hikari Shimoda’s Instagram had been updated, and when I opened her Stories, there was the post below.
Believe it or not, it came with the text message “Sold out in 1min!!!” In other words, it sold out within one minute. There was no way I could win this…
Children of This Planet
This piece is “#14” from the “Children of This Planet” series, so it’s presumably a work unveiled in 2014 (confirmed via the official site).
Even within the series, it wears an honest, guileless expression — a motherly image that, placed in your room, gives you a sense of security, as if it would keep you safe.
I wanted it so badly, so this is a real shame…
