A group exhibition in the gallery by the Japanese artists Keisuke Tanaka, Sako Kojima, Tsukasa Ohtake and Etsuko Fukaya, influenced by the movements of contemporary art but also incorporating the remarkable power of Japanese traditions. The shoe features paintings, watercolours and sculptures.
MOGADISHNI CPH is proud to present a group exhibition in the gallery by the Japanese artists Keisuke Tanaka, Sako
Kojima, Tsukasa Ohtake and Etsuko Fukaya. This show is a result of a collaboration between MOGADISHNI and the
Japanese contemporary art gallery Yamamoto Gendai from Tokyo. The show will feature selected works from the artists
ranging from the traditional Japanese etchings to paintings, watercolours and sculptures.
TOKYO>COPENHAGEN
brings to Denmark a unique sample of contemporary Japanese production, influenced by the movements of
contemporary art but also incorporating the remarkable power of Japanese traditions.
TANAKA Keisuke (b.1976)
Keisuke Tanaka´s tall, gracious sculptures depict marvelous worlds of deep forests and clouds towering above one another
and reaching into an imaginary heaven. In a phantasmagoric way, these tell tales of fantasy and imaginary worlds
as the ones from the tradition of Japanese animation. Tanaka studied academic wooden sculpture at National University
of Art and Music of Tokyo. He combines the traditional wood carving technique with acrylic paint in order to express his
imaginary celestial place. His idea of the world as expressed in his sculptures is very positive, the way upwards is a way
toward fortune.
KOJIMA Sako (b. 1976)
Whether performing in the faux-fur costume of a rodent, sculpting tragicomic three-dimensional objects, or painting
small animals hidden in sinister forests, Kojima creates a world brimming with the complex and cynical.The animals
featured in her paintings are solo, left by themselves in a dark forest in silence but given a sense of strength and charm
with the artist’s aggressive brush strokes. Sako Kojima is considered part of a Japanese stream called ‘kawaii’ (a
specific Japanese cuteness, present in clothing, toys and personal mannerism) but her work goes far beyond infantilism
or immaturity. It borders with sex fantasies, and, even though mixed with irony, her work hints at the sorrow of an artist’s
introspective journey.
OHTAKE Tsukasa (b. 1978)
Ohtake was initially schooled in the ‘Nihon-Ga’ technique, which orthodoxly insists on the use of natural pigments and
depiction of such “timeless” motifs as vegetation. However, as time went by he felt an unease between the anachronistic
practice that he had devoted himself to and his contemporary surroundings, and altered his subject matter and
palette to something that he felt was more pertinent and real to him. Soon after, he began employing the stylistic trope
of the bold lined ‘manga’ to depict spooks and other fantastical characters, proving the ongoing fascination that Japan
has with the strange intermediary zone between human and animal. As well as the paintings, his paper-cut-out images
provoke a feeling of unease and of encountering something alien, caused by the perfect symmetry of the paper motifs.
FUKAYA Etsuko (b. 1981)
Etsuko Fukayas etchings are modern reinterpretations of the traditional, both regarding choice of motif and technique.
The detail and precision of the works are of magnifying-glass caliber, which she produces using this high fidelity medium.
She delves into etching's technical possibilities and imbues the sheet with thin lines, creating physically small but
grandiose spectacles. The animals, fish, insects and plants she depicts are treated in a way that draws out their fantastic
aspects, while also depicting the cold radiance of indifference that much of nature appears to have towards man.
MOGADISHNI CPH looks forward to see you at the opening reception Thursday November 22 from 5-8 PM. Sako Kojima will be present. Please check out www.mogadishni.com for more information or contact the gallery.
Mogadishni Cph
Carl Jacobsensvej 16 opg. 6 3.sal - Copenhagen
Opening hours: Tuesday-Friday 11 AM - 5 PM/ Saturday 12 – 3 PM