The Day I Become a Tree" is a series of works that first appeared in 2001, at the beginning of the artist's career. As the title suggests, this is a series of works in which the artist creates silhouette-like images of trees by carving them out. The word "tree" here is used only in a symbolic sense. It is not intended to resemble an actual tree, but rather an abstract "tree" that exists only in the various layers of paint. The panels of the base material are carefully painted on the ground, and then once the panels are painted, they are scraped off. This is to eliminate as much as possible the influence of the grain of the panel itself on the final image. After that, we randomly add layers of paint in a variety of colors, transparent or opaque, line or surface, and color. After dozens of random layers are painted, about 20 solid layers of paint are applied. The final step is to apply several layers of metallic silver to the top layer, which will be the background color of the screen, interspersed with cooler colors to create the image of a "tree that has grown to erode the artificial, inorganic color surface". The thickly painted screen, which is so intricately intertwined that it is impossible for the artist to grasp it, is then scraped with water-resistant sandpaper. Like a sculpture, the first step is to roughly sharpen the screen with an electric sander, and then hand sharpening is also used for the narrower areas and for the finishing touches. After repeating this process over and over again, a "tree" appears on the screen. The work is completed when I feel that the "abstract tree" is both strong enough and compositionally balanced enough to be used as a painting. The sides of the screen are finished in white, the same as the ground color of the screen, and the slit on the back side is a duct that serves as ventilation inside the panel, but also allows pins and hooks to be hung for installation. The screen is machined so that it is smooth and can be wiped clean with a dish towel. One of the characteristics of the painting, "multilayered magic," is to be fully utilized. A scene that can only exist by paint on a support. In 1999, I found a way to do this that met my desire from the time I started to create. Since then, I have been pursuing the possibilities of painting with the consistent technique and matiere of "layering and grinding acrylic paint.
