Landscape Series No.2

At one point, when I left Tokyo on a trip, I saw a spacious rural landscape from the train window, and I was reminded of the original vastness and beauty of the earth. Then I thought about the scenery most familiar to me after living in Tokyo for over 20 years. First, the space that passes from front to back has almost disappeared due to multi-tenant buildings that line up like walls. And when I want to look away from the dirty buildings and crowds standing in front of me, I have no choice but to look up at the minimized sky cut out by the building. My gaze at the Tokyo landscape goes up and down between the three points above my head, the building, and my feet. I arrived at radiation composition thinking that this movement of gaze could be expressed in a form that contrasts with the composition of so-called “landscape paintings” drawn in the Netherlands in the 16th and 17th centuries. A small sky cut out by the outline of a building is placed in the center of the screen, and starting from that, the screen connects to the dirty scene underfoot.

The expression of “nature,” which used to be the most important element, has almost been lost in this landscape painting, and the elements that are regarded as important instead are dirt on the ground (cigarette butts, vomited gum, jerks), in other words, living traces that countless unknown people barely leave in this society.

When I look at people living in the city, they all seem to be constantly being chased by something and are heading fast to their destination. Once incorporated as a cog wheel into a system society called a city, it is difficult to break out of that trend. You won't be allowed to stop. I can feel the countless hours and bodies that are consumed by not being given time to find value or brilliance on one's own in a small, insignificant life for individuals, from the hustle and bustle of footsteps. However, at the same time, it is also certain that they choose the best for themselves from the few options they have been given and live directly, and I think that honesty and seriousness can ultimately be called pride called humanity. The hustle and bustle of the city is also the whole story of the lives of so many people, and it has complicated layers.

People who live quietly in an inorganic and cold city. From observing these everyday scenes, I think about the value of individuals and the value of life in modern society, and express them in paintings and photographs as output.

acrylic, oil, pastel, pencil and collage on panel