Maria Farrar "Too late to turn back now" OTA FINE ARTS Installation view of "Too late to turn back now" (2019) by Maria Farrar at OTA FINE ARTS Courtesy of the artist and OTA FINE ARTS OTA FINE ARTS is pleased to present "Too late to turn back now", the first solo exhibition in Asia by up-and-coming young artist Maria Farrar. Maria Farrar was born in the Philippines in 1988, and grew up in Shimonoseki until the age of 15, and now lives and works in London. Farah's works are based on scenes drawn from her everyday memories, experiences, and emotions. Although the themes are conventional, her unique way of touching colors and motifs catches our attention. A woman's back, a dog, high-heeled shoes, and a bakery scene often appear in her works. Since these motifs appear repeatedly, the audience tends to try to interpret her work. The audience may guess that her motifs may have strong messages such as social issues in them. Whether the artist intended it or not, her works give us a variety of possibilities. I feel that her work is more focused on the way she expresses the moment she captures. Maria Farrar, Writer, 2019, oil on linen, 180 x 130 cm Courtesy of the artist, mother's tankstation Dublin | London and Ota Fine Arts, Tokyo / Singapore / Shanghai Singapore / Shanghai The fascination of Farrar's work lies in the way she depicts the landscape as a narrative piece in each of her works, stimulating our curiosity. However, if we look at her painting techniques, there are other elements that are just as fascinating as the content and themes. Below the "artist" section, the outline is remarkable. Farah uses outlines to depict shoes, as is a common painting technique in Asia, from traditional Asian paintings to manga and anime. Also, the brushwork used to depict the floor and the puppies is like calligraphy. Her works make us think about the content and technique, and make us spend more time in front of the work. As mentioned above, at first glance, one might think that she is trying to talk about gender issues, but more than that, the works are born from Farah's preference for symbols, landscapes, and memories, and it takes time to appreciate them to understand them. In addition, his painting style, which seems to be a fusion of Eastern and Western painting, keeps the viewer in front of the work for a long time. Installation view of "Too late to turn back now" (2019) by Maria Farrar at OTA FINE ARTS Courtesy of the artist and OTA FINE ARTS Installation view of "Too late to turn back now" (2019) by Maria Farrar at OTA FINE ARTS Courtesy of the artist and OTA FINE ARTS As a professional painter, she is often prejudiced by the variety of vivid colors in her works, saying that the works gathered together will never fit together because of the clash of colors. But Farah, being a professional painter, breaks through that prejudice. Even though she uses a lot of vivid colors, the impression you get the moment you enter the gallery may not be what you expected. If you want to feel it firsthand, why don't you visit the OTA FINE ARTS exhibition at OTA FINE ARTS from August 24 to September 21? Also on display at the exhibition is his latest work. Maria Farrar "Too late to turn back now" OTA FINE ARTS O DATES : August 24, 2019 (Sat) - September 21, 2019 (Sun) Opening hours : 11:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. Closed on Sundays and holidays. Free admission. Article written by: Jeongeun Jo Born in Korea, lives in Japan. One of the members of TRiCERA, she graduated from the Graduate School of Fine Arts, Tokyo University of the Arts. She is also an artist herself.