Aine Jo “Since That Day”
We visited a solo exhibition by Aine Jo, whose work will also be on view shortly at “Future Artists Tokyo” within Art Fair Tokyo 2019. The venue is TAKU SOMETANI GALLERY.
This exhibition was held to coincide with her graduation from the graduate school of Kyoto City University of Arts.
For Aine Jo, who is based in the Kansai region, this marks her first solo exhibition in Tokyo.
The show centered on portrait works produced over the past two years.
Artist Statement
What does it mean for me, living now, to depict people close to me? I am drawn to those relaxed, fleeting expressions that a person shows only to those with whom they have let their guard down—the figures and gestures make me want to paint. Painting portraits is like a diary that, in any era, mirrors the “now” and records the artist. Cutting out an ordinary moment of an individual and dissolving feelings that cannot be put into words into a multitude of colors and brushstrokes, I have recorded “that day.”
Aine Jo’s works are distinguished by vibrantly saturated oil paints and a singular stroke.
Her combinations of colors—unlike any I’ve seen—come as a genuine surprise.
By changing the paints she uses, she has set a price difference from her earlier works; but it also seems to connect to the rich expressive power of her palette.
Aine Jo’s works are finished, at their busiest, with as many as forty brushes, brought together with a carefully calculated compositional command.
The brushwork, which carries a sense of speed, ranges across brushes both thin and thick, all feeding into the work.
As someone with a soft spot for painted surfaces, this writer couldn’t help closing in on the canvas.
It was a delight to see the difference between the matière of the work close up and the work seen from a distance.
It was a rare and valuable opportunity to see the work of Kansai-based Aine Jo.
