PUBLICATIONS
EMBASSY OF JAPAN
Onna No Ko
16 - 25 June 2023
10 a.m. – 7 p.m. Monday to Friday, 11 a.m. – 7 p.m. Saturday to Sunday
Spiral Galleries, 44a Charlotte Road, EC2A 3PD, London
07597298732
info@tokyoparkgallery.com
“Women – a collective that has been Humanity’s favourite source of Culture, Beauty, and Artistic Inspiration. For millennia, Femininity has morphed into depictions of goddesses, heroines and pioneers – strong figures that enchant and entrap its viewers in galleries and museums. Even after the apparent disuse of academic dogmas in Art, the representation of the Female Sitter and Artist, has changed its context and symbolism to modern standards, but maintained its imponent popularity” - Martim Barroso from TOKYO PARK claims.
The young Curator will carry out a second Japanese group exhibition, following the success of Tokyo Colours, Shoreditch’s first ever group exhibition focused on Japan’s newest generation of artistic expression: PostSuperflat. A commercial exhibition that hosted a collection of paintings made by critically acclaimed Tokyoites.
In order to capture a fair representation of the theme Onna No Ko (‘Girl’ or ‘Young Woman’ in Japanese), the Art Director decided to surpass the former number of participants. Expanding from 5 to 9 talented artists based in Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka, and UK, all empowered and inspired by female imagery, they will present their personal interpretations through diverse mediums, colour palettes and iconography:
The charismatic painter, graphic designer, and DJ: Sakurai Hajime. Inspired by Pop Illustration, Retro Pin-up and 1950s-60s advertisement, the Osakabased artist is a veteran in streetwear collabs and marketing illustration, and a versatile painter.
One of youngest participants, Hinano Niimi, is an Art student at the University of West England. She experiments on the image of anime girls, deconstructing and distorting the characters, challenging the perception of the viewer. Onna No Ko will be her gallery exhibition debut. Famous for the representation and celebration of the Shibuya-born 'Gal' community, Isayamax is a painter and graphic designer, with an extensive portfolio of collaborations with brands such as Sanrio, New Balance, and with a few Japanese Idols.
Miyano Kaori is a young Tokyo-based artist specialised in Shoujo art. Shoujo is a Manga and Anime genre targeted to young girls, it normally presents romantic, slice of life and friendship stories, following an iconic art style known for the depiction of long brightly dyed haired large-eyed schoolgirls and beautiful feminine-faced romantic interests.
Inspired by the moon itself, Osaka-based Kayoko Sekiya is a young artist specialised in dream-like compositions, solely inhabited by a young girl, who embraces the Moon and its mythic environment.
Mayumi Konno returns to TOKYO PARK for a second exhibition. Konno is critically acclaimed for her original character: a young girl with a mysterious gaze, who is commonly immersed in abstract and photoshop-like backgrounds.
In a world ruled by SNS, likes and follower counts, Someta draws "instaperfect" selfies (portraits) of young women.
Influenced by more traditional strains of Japanese art, Syuka blends Nihonga, Surrealist and symbolic features unto her portraits. Flowers and architectural elements fuse with the female sitters, creating unparallel divine beings.
Shirane Yutanpo is a Japanese icon of pin-up and line drawing. The artist and illustrator holds an endless portfolio of fashion and marketing collaborations with brands such as Neon Genesis Evangelion, Daiso, Sanrio, Beams Japan and Shōnen Jump.
Martim Barroso extends his welcome to all art enthusiasts from UK and abroad, interested in learning and witnessing the newest artistic expressions that Japan currently offers: "Onna No Ko is an homage to Humanity's oldest source of artistic inspiration: Women. An endless and beautiful theme that deserves the most contemporary Japanese perspective and an attentive audience. I wish to invite everyone to join us and explore the powerful subject that is Femininity as painter, sitter and muse." The Preview will be held on June 16th, 5 pm at Spiral Galleries, 44a Charlotte Road, EC2A 3PD, London.
Admission Free
TOKYO PARK Gallery is pleased to debut with TOKYO COLOURS
📍 TOKYO PARK
44A Charlotte Road
London EC2A EPD
Exhibition dates: 28 October - 6 November 2022
_________
A group exhibition with Urban Japanese Artists Ashiya Shiguma, Mayumi Konno, Neko, Saiakunana and TYM344. Shaped by their socio-cultural experience, these artists will paint a booming, flourishing Art Scene in Shoreditch. Five Japanese artists, five diverse perspectives, twenty-four paintings, one art scene.
Sotheby’s Institute of Art London
Official SIA London Alumni Chapter
Not To Be Missed:
TOKYO PARK Gallery is pleased to debut with TOKYO COLOURS
📍 TOKYO PARK
44A Charlotte Road
London EC2A EPD
Exhibition dates: 28 October - 6 November 2022
_________
A group exhibition with Urban Japanese Artists Ashiya Shiguma, Mayumi Konno, Neko, Saiakunana and TYM344. Shaped by their socio-cultural experience, these artists will paint a booming, flourishing Art Scene in Shoreditch. Five Japanese artists, five diverse perspectives, twenty-four paintings, one art scene.
Ninjin Art
Tokyo Park and Ninjin Art promote the new wave of Japanese art
DATE
02.11.22
Tokyo Park Gallery and Ninjin Art join forces to raise awareness of Japan's hottest new artists via a limited-time group exhibition in London's Shoreditch and soon-to-follow video.
London, 2 November 2022: Art lovers still have until November 6 to catch the first UK glimpse of the new wave of contemporary art sweeping Japan at the Tokyo Colours exhibition in London’s Shoreditch. A group show organised by London-based Tokyo Park Gallery and soon to be followed by a music-driven video produced by Cornwall’s Ninjin Art, the exhibition brings together the work of SaiakuNana, Ashiya Shiguma, Mayumi Konno, Neko and TYM344, a new cadre of contemporary artists whose vision has so far remained largely unseen outside of their native Japan.
“In an art world marked by conceptualism and the avant-garde, filled with hard-to-reach meanings and audience neglection, the new generation of Japanese artists bring with them a new wave of colour and beauty accessible to all. Through the medium of painting, Tokyo Colours presents a never-before-seen alternative approach to pop: a post-superflat reaction to art,” says Tokyo Park founder and exhibition curator Martim Barroso.
“Most of these highly talented artists have never exhibited outside of East Asia before, let alone in London, so the Tokyo Colours show is something truly new and fresh,” adds award-winning animator and Ninjin Art producer Ignatius Rake. “If you think you’ve seen the best contemporary art Japan has to offer, think again. But hurry. The exhibition closes this coming Sunday.”
The new wave of Japanese art: Tokyo Colours curator Martim Barrosso.
Tokyo Colours garners global interest
Since opening its doors this past October 28, Tokyo Colours has already whipped up keen interest among online buyers. At the same time, the response from visitors to the show has been overwhelmingly positive, with attendees awed by the range of talent, styles and techniques on display. In addition to the UK, Japan and Hong Kong, interest in the show has also come from across the Pond, with Sotheby’s in New York, for instance, reaching out to Martim to participate in its Gavel Prize competition for innovative young art business entrepreneurs.
“As well as a mutual friendship with SaiakuNana, who operated her own self-funded gallery in Shoreditch until July this year, Martim and I share a passion for modern Japanese art and we are both particularly taken by the new generation of artists working there who successfully fuse elements of contemporary Japanese popular culture with bold colours, exquisitely detailed brushwork and new approaches to visual storytelling,” Rake says. “Tokyo Colours is truly unique and a must-see for anyone with an interest in contemporary art, modern Japan or indeed both.”
In a similar vein to the show, the accompanying video will eschew staid convention while providing a permanent visual record of the Tokyo Colours exhibition and the new wave of Japanese artists showcased. “Rather than being a typical documentary, it will follow a style more akin to a music video, featuring elements of animation and a soundtrack by Hard-Drinking Peasant, a house music producer I regularly work with,” Rake reports.
Tokyo Colours will run between the hours of 10.30 am to 7 pm at Spiral Galleries located at 44a Charlotte Road, London, EC2A 3PD until Sunday, November 6. It will be followed by more Tokyo Park exhibitions showcasing further cutting-edge Japanese art over the coming months. More information can be found online here: https://www.tokyoparkgallery.com/exhibitions
Not To Be Missed
https://www.ninjinart.com/tokyo-park-and-ninjin-art-promote-the-new-wave-of-japanese-art/
Notes to Editors
1) The winner of the Grand Prize at the 21st Taro Okamoto Awards for Contemporary Art in 2018, Saiakunana is a punk-rocker known for making intensely pink acrylic/mixed media paintings that often incorporate uncommon materials, such as typed paper, found objects, both Japanese and English text and a recurring electric guitar-playing girl that may or may not be SaiakuNana herself. Between October 2021 and July 2022, she ran her own fully immersive and highly distinctive galley on Redchurch Street in Shoreditch.
2) Still in her early 20s, Ashiya Shiguma draws partially concepted animated women that incorporate luminous paint as well such unconventional mediums as torn cardboard and the celluloid sheets once used in vintage animations. She has a particular affection for the Golden Age of Anime of the early 2000s, as evidenced by her subject’s big rounds eyes, sharp eyelashes and colourful, flowing hair.
3) Mayumi Konno’s recurring female protagonists wear a mysterious piercing gaze, attentively observing the viewer while surrounded by abstract violet and blue backgrounds and missing textures that combine to create an otherworldly harmony. Despite their strong resemblance to digital artworks, complete with the grey-and-white checkerboard transparent background familiar to Photoshop users worldwide, her works are actually highly detailed paintings executed exquisitely in acrylics.
4) Neko takes full advantage of his endless artistic inspiration, turning every medium and surface into paint-layered colourful works of art. A means of breaking his own isolation, his paintings feature a series of women that tease the viewer with their enigmatic smiles and alluring presences.
5) TYM344’s work focusses on the ‘Binarization of Art’ through the use of just black paint and white. As well as items of computer code, his paintings include urban landscapes composed of street signs and advertising that are solely populated by two characters, Yuu san and Ai san, who react to their environment and their painter with emotions that are at once clearly recognisable despite the use of minimal facial detailing.
6) Born in 1997 and originally from Portugal, Tokyo Park founder Martim Barroso gained an academic background in History, Art History, Art Curation and Museological Practices at the University of Lisbon before moving to London in 2019 to pursue an MA in Art Business at Sotheby’s Institute of Art. Following a lecture on Asian Emerging Markets, he became increasingly focussed on Japanese contemporary art. Tokyo Colours represents his first curated exhibition and from 2023 he plans to stage further shows promoting Japan’s newest artistic talents across the UK and Europe.
7) Cornwall-based Ignatius Rake specialises in making music videos and kimo-kawaii animations. He has worked with bands, musicians and artists in the UK, Poland and Japan, including SaiakuNana and members of Madness and Dexys Midnight Runners among others. In 2022, he won a Special Award at the 12th Unco Film Festival in Tokyo, with his work positively likened to that of Terry Gilliam.
Press Contacts: Martim Barroso; Ignatius Rake.
Picture credits: (Top) A detail of 1(18) by Mayumi Konno photographed by Ignatius Rake; (bottom) Martim Barrosso photographed by Ignatius Rake.
Art News Portal
Tokyo Park and Ninjin Art team up to promote the new wave of Japanese art
Tokyo Park Gallery and Ninjin Art join forces to raise awareness of Japan's hottest new artists via a limited-time group exhibition in London's Shoreditch and soon-to-follow video.
Web: https://www.ninjinart.com/tokyo-park-and-ninjin-art-promote-the-new-wave-of-japanese-art/
Image Copyright / CDN: Mayumi Konno/Ignatius Rake: https://www.ninjinart.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Detail_of_118_by_Mayumi_Konno_at_Tokyo_Colours_Photo_by_Ignatius_Rake-copy.webp
https://www.artnewsportal.com/art-news/tokyo-park-and-ninjin-art-team-up-to-promote-the-new-wave-of-japanese-art
TOKYO COLOURS
28 October - 6 November 2022
10 a.m. - 7.p.m
Tolkyo Park, 44a Charlotte Road, EC2A 3PD, London
07597298732
nfo@tokyoparkgallery.com
TOKYO PARK Gallery is pleased to debut with TOKYO COLOURS, a group exhibition with Urban Japanese Artists Ashiya Shiguma, Mayumi Konno, Neko, Saiakunana and TYM344. Shaped by their socio-cultural experience, these artists will paint a booming, flourishing Art Scene in Shoreditch. An Artistic expression which until recently was isolated from the United Kingdom.
In an Art World marked by Conceptualism and Avant-Garde, filled with hard-to-reach meanings and audience neglection, the new generation of Japanese artists will bring a new wave of Colour and Beauty, accessible to all. Through painting, TOKYO COLOURS will present a never-before seen Alternative approach to Pop: a Post-Superflat reaction to Art.
All united for the concepts of self-innovation and perfection, each artist follows their personal aesthetic and colour palette. Ashiya Shiguma draws partially concepted animated women in unconventional mediums such as cardboard and transparent multi-layered acrylic sheets. Mayumi Konno’s women wear a mysterious piercing gaze, attentively observing the viewer, surrounded by violet and blue plush dolls, abstract backgrounds, and missing textures. Neko takes full advantage of his endless artistic inspiration, turning every medium and surface into paint-layered colourful works of art, crowded with women in racy, risqué situations, teasing the viewer. Saiakunana is a punk-rocker, known for making pink acrylic/mixed media paintings, incorporating uncommon materials such as typed paper, water bottle labels, English writing, and hand-drawn guitar-playing girls. TYM344 revolves upon the concept of ‘Binarization of Art’, painting urban landscapes composed of street signs and advertising in Black and White, solely populated by two enigmatic characters: Yuu san and Ai san, who smile and react to their painter/photographer.
Admission: Free
https://www.uk.emb-japan.go.jp/JAPANUKEvent/event/2022/202210/28-TokyoColours.html
EMBASSY OF JAPAN
Art Daily.com
Tokyo Park and Ninjin Art team up to promote the new wave of Japanese artDetail of 1(18) by Mayumi Konno at Tokyo Colours. Photo: Ignatius Rake.
https://artdaily.com/news/151365/Tokyo-Park-and-Ninjin-Art-team-up-to-promote-the-new-wave-of-Japanese-art#.Y2ZyrHbP1PY
ART RABBIT
EXHIBITION
just opened
Tokyo Colours
28 Oct 2022 – 6 Nov 2022
Times and detailsToggle
Spiral Galleries
Location detailsToggle Location details
Address
44a Charlotte Road
EC2A 3PD
SEB’S ART LIST
EXHIBITION
23/10/2022 - 06/05/2022
Tokyo Park Gallery Group Show - Colours
After a thesis and one year of preparation, the project will become the first group exhibition dedicated to the new Japanese Aesthetic movement in London.
Five Japanese artists, five diverse perspectives, twenty-four paintings, one art scene.