Wood Sculpture, Oil Painting, Nihonga, Drawing
I visited a joint exhibition by four artists working in different mediums: “Wood Sculpture, Oil Painting, Nihonga, Drawing.” The venue is Naruyama Gallery in Kudanshita.
Wood sculpture by Kosuke Ikejima, oil painting by Yugo Kogure, nihonga (Japanese-style painting) by Riki, and drawing by Ei Kaneko — the works of each artist were condensed into the gallery’s compact space.
Kosuke Ikejima
Because Kosuke Ikejima’s sculptures are not sanded, you can savor the rich expression of the wood grain just as it is.
They look simple at first glance, but the fine detail visible throughout speaks to a confident level of craftsmanship.
What’s more, each work is made to stand independently on its own.
Hats off to the skill it takes to build works of this level while calculating balance at every step.
Yugo Kogure
Yugo Kogure is an artist I had also seen at Art Fair Tokyo, and my impression is that he is an exceptional painter.
Only one new work was shown, “/91,” but I felt the fluid trajectory of the brushwork surge toward me with real momentum. So good!
Riki
The one I had my eye on this time was the young artist Riki (read as “Riki”).
For his first commercial gallery show, the quality — his high painting skill, his sophisticated compositions — made the fact that everything sold out completely understandable.
The work that made the strongest impression was “Heart 1,” depicting a snake.
The framing is superb, making the work stand out all the more.
The cat piece also stayed with me.
As with the snake work, the composition is fascinating; look closely and the space itself seems to warp.
Profoundly deep, exquisitely skilled — I came away thinking, what a young artist!
What are the motifs of the next two works…?
I imagined all sorts of things as I looked at them, but when I asked the gallery for the answer I was floored — apparently, they are anuses.
Although everything had sold, I happened to visit right when two new works had just arrived.
Even for those additional new pieces, they were shown in carefully chosen frames — very much in keeping with Naruyama Gallery’s dedication to framing.
Riki is scheduled to have his first solo show in 2020.
He is an artist I am looking forward to following.
Ei Kaneko
Ei Kaneko’s works are drawn in pencil.
The monochrome, stylish image-making is reminiscent of Kuniyoshi Gokita, but the technique is entirely different.
The images — extracted, edited, and integrated — are all rendered meticulously in pencil (graphite).
Matted and framed like prints, I momentarily did not realize these were pencil drawings.
After a first impression of hard-edged, seemingly trace-less pencil work, a shivery, unsettling sensation slowly welled up.
Works by Pierre Molinier from the Naruyama Gallery collection were shown alongside.
The taste on display is off the charts, and it made me smile too. Fantastic.
The distinctive works of four artists lined up in a single space, filling it with a dense, heady atmosphere.
