"Homo sapiens sapiens"
Kyohei Naito

Kyohei Naito,

Bambinart Gallery is pleased to present "Homo sapiens sapiens", a solo exhibition by Kyohei Naito. Kyohei Naito (Born 1989 in Tokyo) graduated from Tokyo University of the Arts in 2015 and plans to finish his work at the graduate school's Oil Painting - Technique and Material Department this spring. This will be his first solo exhibition.

Naito's works can be divided into several themes. They are, mainly: domestic animal series, great people series, and the series we will be presenting this time which combines Western painting and simple lines. Referencing many artists from the likes of Jan van Eyck, Dürer, and Michelangelo to anonymous painters and classic works, he has boldly trimmed and drawn out single body parts onto which he combines simple lines reminiscent of ancient mural carvings. These works are at once comical while producing an air of eeriness in expressing the essence of humor and absurdity of the human race. The simple line drawings are reminiscent of the simplistic expression of ancient Japan and, by combining these with classic Western-style painting, he mixes together the expression of a variety of eras and backgrounds. His trimming and excellence of composition come together to create a modern feel.

"From ancient times to the present, many psychological descriptions, such as a slight looseness of the mouth or movement of the eyes which cannot be expressed in words, have been left for us in paintings. By taking out just these descriptions, modifying them slightly, and changing their composition, one can create quite a large change in the image. This is much like the phenomena seen in actual human relations and one's relations with various things. I have taken what I feel from thinking about the origin and essence of humanity, relations with other people, and the environment which surrounds these things and turned them into paintings of my thoughts." - Kyohei Naito

We will be displaying eight paintings and several drawings which Naito created from 2016 to 2017 for your perusal.