YUGEN Gallery will hold Yuki Nishimoto's solo exhibition "Sukuminosumi" from August 4th (Friday) to August 9th (Wednesday), 2023.

"Samurai" drawn over 10 years

In particular, the live painting at Art Basel Hong Kong 2023, which was attended by 177 exhibitors from 32 countries and regions, received high acclaim locally, and we look forward to further progress.

This exhibition "Sukuminosumi" focuses on the samurai that Nishimoto has been drawing since he started his career as an artist, and consists of 12 old and new works. We will express the identity of the Japanese people through the samurai, which can be said to be a symbol of integrity and fighting spirit.

Conflict of Fear and Courage

In May of last year, his first solo exhibition in Tokyo in three and a half years, “Flying Ink,” was held at YUGEN Gallery. About a year has passed since the last exhibition, in which you can fully feel the dynamism of living things, from classic motifs such as dragons and tigers to modern athletes. .

“I used to draw samurai because I was attracted to their coolness, but when I saw the actual armor and swords again, I started to feel fear. I want to express the courage to overcome

Nishimoto says that through kickboxing, which he started last year, he learned about the fear that comes with fighting. Although it was started as an exercise, it is said that the fear of confronting a human changed the way he looked at the samurai. He is also in charge of the main visuals for the Kinshūki National High School Judo Tournament and the Gyokuryūki National High School Kendo Tournament to be held in July 2023. At the timing when you feel the encounter with martial arts, the tension between humans can be said to be decided at the moment of teaming up.

“I’ve been drawing samurai for a long time, and after 10 years of painting, I am proud that I have finally built a foundation, and I feel that I can make a leap forward. I want to draw in a natural style that eliminates artificial lines.”

Although he feels that his technique has improved with experience and his expression has matured, he says that he has a sense of crisis that his fighting spirit has faded because he has become able to express himself delicately. Aiming for art, I pursued the expression of “one-shot game”, and after trying all kinds of painting methods, starting with oil painting, I arrived at Sumi-e. "Samurai" faces to recover the tension that cannot be reversed from the moment you put a stroke. It is worth noting that you can trace the transition of his brushwork over the past 10 years, from past works to new works written for this exhibition.

proof of life

“It takes physical strength to concentrate and write in front of people, and I once again felt that I had to have a stronger mind than that. I received energy from the people who came to the event.

Nishimoto says that since last year's solo exhibition, he has come to think more deeply about each piece, resulting in a smaller number of works. I have renewed my ambition that I will not be sorry if I do not approach the work at the best possible time and in perfect condition for the work that can be realized only with the people who support the production behind the scenes, such as the craftsmen who handle Echizen washi paper in Fukui, and the audience. Masu.

The conflict between fear and the courage to overcome it. It can be said that the essence of Nishimoto's sumi-e expression lies not only in live painting, but also in the fact that it condenses the very act of living in a single stroke.

A thread of tension stretched between spaces. Is it fear or courage to pull it off? There is a lively dynamism in the liberation of the mind and body that is in perfect order.