Downtown Los Angeles’ Corey Helford Gallery (CHG) is proud to announce their next major solo show In Our Nature, featuring new works from Japanese artist Ryoko Kaneta and set to premiere June 25th in Gallery 3.
One of the leading figures of Japan’s up-and-coming generation of artists, Kaneta will be making her U.S. solo debut with her upcoming show at CHG, which features 14 new works. The Tokyo-based artist paints according to ancient Japanese philosophies, including the thought that God dwells in all beings. Her descriptive paintings are embedded in historic cultures yet exist as fleeting spectacles of nature. The artist applies acrylic paint to canvas and masterfully blends to create an image that actively develops and moves with cyclicality. Her artworks suggest a passing of time and celebrate nature’s ephemerality.
Kaneta uses the female figure to personify elements of nature, including the phenomenon of weather and dramatic seasonal transformation, both of which are depicted dreamily in the artist’s landscapes. These sceneries, some of which Kaneta has visited, have held particular resonance for the artist. They have encouraged her ambition to accurately express the history and stories of a place. This way of working is akin to the attitudes of the Rinpa and Kanō Schools, approaching painting through scenes of nature portrayed and celebrated in ancient Japanese literature.
In addition to ancient Japanese cultures and philosophies, Kaneta makes reference to contemporary anime and manga. This is most apparent in her use of personification and the innocent, wide-eyed gaze of the female subjects. Seamlessly one with the seasons, the characters project light and warmth, yet embody many a blustery emotion.
Regarding her new works, Kaneta shares, “The girls in my pieces, which are both large and small, embody nature and its many elements, along with invisible things such as signs and memories. Since ancient times, it has been believed in Japan that all things have gods and life. The characters I draw are anthropomorphic beings of nature and invisible things, similar to the feeling when Japanese people see mountains or the sea and feel the existence of God.” Adding, “This exhibition expresses various aspects of nature and I hope the viewer is able to feel the nature I tried to express through my characters in these works.”
In Our Nature opens Saturday, June 25th from 7:00 pm – 10:00 pm in Gallery 3, alongside a solo show from Hikari Shimoda, entitled Fight to Live in the Void, in the Main Gallery and a five-artist exhibition, entitled All Creatures Great and Small, featuring Ewa Prończuk-Kuziak, Dewi Plass, Matt Dangler, Phillip Singer, and Richard Ahnert in Gallery 2. Until further notice, masks continue to be required for entry into the gallery, regardless of vaccination status.