9s Gallery is pleased to present "27," a solo exhibition by Kamakiriko from 1/12/2024 (Fri) to 1/20/2024 (Sat).

Kamakiriko has been depicting "strong women. The main theme of this solo exhibition, "27," is a "27-year-old woman" who has been in society for several years and is in the process of acquiring core strength.

TRiCERA editorial staff will interview Kamakiriko to find out about the theme of her new works and her idea of "strength.

Kamakiriko

Kamakiriko is a contemporary artist who is tackling the challenge of "reconstructing the portrait of a beautiful woman. She depicts the vitality of human beings through women.

She began her career as an artist in 2021. In August 2023, she will participate in a group exhibition at GINZA SIX Artglorieux Gallery, a gallery owned by Daimaru-Matsuzakaya, together with Yayoi Kusama and others, and is highly anticipated in the contemporary art world.

In addition, seven of her works were exhibited in her solo exhibition "Do girls dream of Electric City?" at TRiCERA in the same month, and two works were exhibited in "Christmas Miracle" in December, both of which were sold out.

The theme of the new works is "27 years old" gaining strength.

This is your third solo exhibition "27" at TRiCERA, having held the solo exhibition "Do the girls dream of electric city? Why did you choose the theme of "27-year-old woman" for this exhibition?

In considering the theme for this exhibition, I was strongly motivated to delve deeper into my own theme of depicting"strong women.
The "strong women" I want to depict are not strong from birth.
I envision a "strong woman" who has pain and sadness in her heart, but who has also acquired strength because of her painful experiences.
Even if something sad happens, she will live her daily life without hesitation.

When I looked back at myself and the people around me, I realized that I was exactlyat the age of 27.

I have also wanted to portray women who are a little older than I have been portraying them in the past. In that sense, "27" was the perfect theme for me.

Key visuals depicting the image of "27": "Slight Fever" and "Daze

The two main visuals of the exhibition, titled "Slight Fever" and "Daze," are striking.

This is the first work I did for this exhibition. The theme of this work is "strength," the ability to do what needs to be done without being affected by some discomfort or pain. The titles " Slight Fever" and "Dizzy"were inspired by the image of such ailments. If I feel a little discomfort, I don't show it, but stand up straight and keep standing.

I think it is possible to maintain one's daily routine even when something is wrong, because one has overcome various kinds of pain. Of course, when things are really tough, you should take a break.


Slight fever

The moss green background is also a very peaceful color.

This color also reflects the image of "strength" I have in mind. I chose this color because it is slightly desaturated, and its dark or light color is ambiguous, so I imagined it as a mixture of various experiences in the process of becoming strong.

The "Heartbeat" series depicts the inner world wrapped in "strength

Heartbeat #1

The "Heartbeat" series is a complete turnaround from the bright reds and pinks of the "Heartbeat" series.

While "Slight Fever" and "Daze" depict "strength" as seen externally, that is, from a third-person perspective, " Heartbeat" attempts to depict inner feelings. I believe that there are many cases in which a person who looks at you from the outside and thinks, "That person is so nonchalant," actually harbors inner turmoil and insecurity.

The jagged shadows of the women leave a strong impression on me.

In this series, I intentionally drew the shadows in a rough resolution to express an atmosphere of "something went wrong," as if an error or bug had occurred on a digital screen.

In "Heartbeat #2" and "#3," the red color is slightly shifted from the black outline to create a shimmering effect that resembles a heartbeat.


From right to left: 《Heartbeat #2,3,4


So, does "#4," in which the red is not applied to the face, show that the agitation has subsided? The shadows are still jagged, though they appear to be calm. She suppresses all the turmoil from "#1" to "#3" and puts on a clear face. This is another aspect of what I consider a "strong woman.

Women Living in the City: "in Tokyo" series

Like "R City," which was shown at your solo exhibition in August and featured a night view of Roppongi in the background, "in Tokyo" is also a work depicting a city. Why did you choose this location?



When I thought about the theme of 27 years old, the first thing that came to my mind was "a 27-year-old woman working in Tokyo. As a representative place in Tokyo, I chose Tokyo Station, where many people come and go, as the main subject of my work.

Personally, I thinkTokyo Stationsymbolizes the emptiness of the city. During the day, many people gather there to work, but no one lives there.
So at night, everyone goes home, and this time there is no one. ......
I have the image that people are part of the parts of "Tokyo Station," and that during the daytime the parts come together and operate as a device called "Tokyo Station.

In "in Tokyo #1," a close-up of a woman's bust emerges from the median strip in front of the station building.

in Tokyo #1


In this work, I took on the challenge of depicting a landscape that could not exist in reality. This was the result of my trial-and-error process to see if I could express the fact that women are one part of the city of Tokyo. I also wanted to depict the contrast between the woman's face and the expression of the woman who is living in such an indifferent way.

I leave it to the viewer to decide whether she is buried or growing.

Compared to "#1," in which the sky is visible, "#2" and "#3" are filled with buildings in the background.

in Tokyo #2

In "#2" and "#3," I wanted to express the narrowness of the city and the sense of people from various walks of life crowded together, so I made the compositions tightly packed. I alsowanted to depict the universal human figureby choosing a scene that can be found anywhere in the city to some extent, such as a convenience store or a subway station, as a motif, rather than a single place called "Tokyo Station.

In the "in Tokyo" series, even the sides of the works are painted in great detail.

in Tokyo #3

That is a point I was particular about. I thought that by painting even the sides of the paintings, the scenery depicted in the paintings would expand and enrich the experience of actually looking at the paintings. This is something that cannot be done digitally, where the sides do not exist in the first place. In this sense, "resistance to the digital" is a theme that I have continued to carry with me since last August's "Do girls dream of electric city?

It takes time, that's why it's a run-up period.

You used to work mainly with digital media, but since the December group exhibition, you have completely shifted to hand painting. Were there any major differences in your production process?

I feel the biggest difference between the two is the number of processes.

With digital painting, you draw a picture on basic software and then immediately send it to a printer to have it printed on canvas, so the time until the work is completed is relatively short.

On the other hand, hand painting starts with assembling a wooden frame, stretching the canvas, and applying several layers of undercoat (......). However, because there is a lot of work involved before the painting stage, the time spent can give you ideas for color and composition.

Personally, I am glad thathand painting allows me to have "running time " before painting. I would like to continue to draw the "strength" that human beings possess by making the most of that running time.

Click here for details of "27," a solo exhibition by Kamakiriko .

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