410 Gallery Award-winning artist solo exhibition
Wanpaku chunen Tonomaru
Extreme "Craft" Art Exhibition
architecture 2.0
2024.10/3(thu)-10/6(sun)
An art activist who calls himself a global "artist."
Using the art and craft he experienced as a child as a means of expression, he is engaged in extreme craft activities day and night, cunningly examining the intersection of craft and art. He creates installations using everyday objects, snaps of the city, and works with a sense of comedy that is not limited to techniques or technology.
[Activity history] Solo exhibitions and group exhibitions 2023 FLOW (igu_m_art) PHASE (gallery yongou) 2024 architecture (gallery yongou) un do plus (sweets gallery ℃ sesshi) architecture 2.0 (410Gallery) Art events and special exhibitions 2023 Independent Tokyo 2023 (Tokyo Metropolitan Industrial Trade Center) 2024 1st Matsumoto International Art Exhibition un do Exhibition *Grand Prize winner (Matsumoto City Museum) BILLIKEN CREATORS OSAKA 4 (Tamurakoma Co., Ltd. Osaka Head Office) Dynamic Contemporary Artists Exhibition *410Gallery Award winner (Fukuoka Asian Art Museum) 4 ROOMS ART (Seaside Studio CASO) Ikebukuro Wandering Art Exhibition 2024 (Jiyugakuen Myonichikan) Chignitters ART CAMP (Chignitter) Independent Tokyo 2024 *Tugboat Special Award Winner (Tokyo Metropolitan Industrial Trade Center) As of 2024
Appealing to the playfulness of adults
An original masterpiece
Naughty middle-aged man and Maru
Tonomaru, a mischievous middle-aged man whose trademark is wearing a mask
Self-proclaimed
"The World's Craftsmen"
These original works stimulate the playful side of adults and will burn into your mind once you see them.
For example, there is a three-dimensional work called "DOGLE SUIT." I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels a mysterious presence and latent energy from it. When I heard that it was a combination of the Jomon period "Shakoki Dogu" and the mobile suit from the anime "Mobile Suit Gundam," I was surprised by the idea, although it made sense.
The clay figurine, a product of a peaceful civilization that lasted nearly 15,000 years, is combined with a mobile suit designed to be worn by humans living in space. I don't know what the significance of this is. However, I can sense a mysterious power, a kind of aura.
This inspiration and playfulness is also reflected in the artist name. "Tonomaru" comes from Kazuto Tonoma, a character from the baseball manga "Dokaben" by Shinji Mizushima. Although small in stature for a baseball player, Tonoma has a unique batting style that allows him to perform "secret hits" and is a top-class pianist. This admiration for Tonoma leads to his originality.
The "DOGULE SUIT" exudes a presence that combines the past and the future
Hana Samurai and his friends: The Greatest Super
Born and raised in Osaka City. It's probably common in Osaka, the city of comedy, but I've loved comedy since I was a child and even aspired to be a comedian. However, I couldn't keep up with the "athletic vibe" of groups. So I thought, "If it's artistic expression, there seems to be less of a problem," and started making works on my own. It seems that the origin of my playfulness lies there.
However, that is not enough to make a living. He has lived his life changing jobs several times, including photo developing, working at an eyeglass store, and in medical equipment rental sales. The turning point came in 2018, when his parents, who he lived with, became weaker and he needed to care for them. So he quit his job and devoted himself to caring for them, and at the same time, he also began to get serious about his creative work.
Then, the illustration won a prize at the Kansai public exhibition "Art Stream 2018". The title is "Hana Samurai and his fun friends: The Greatest Supper". It is a group of parody works that started from "the silly idea that it would be funny if a samurai's topknot was a flower", but the expressive characters such as animals, gals, wrestlers, and kabuki actors never get boring.
I was hoping to gain momentum from this, but in 2020 the COVID-19 pandemic hit and I lost the opportunity to present my work. On April 8, the day after a state of emergency was declared in seven prefectures, including Osaka, I was shocked to find myself walking through the deserted streets.
"PRESENCE" is a photobook capturing city scenes during the coronavirus pandemic.
"I had no idea the architecture was so beautiful."
From then on, he continued to take photos in the empty city every day. He published the photo book "PRESENCE" in April 2023, which was a collection of photos he had taken with his smartphone over the course of about two years. It is a work of art that captures the pure beauty of buildings in a human city without humans, and is also a valuable book as a record of the pandemic.
This activity, which he says "changed something inside of me," must have had an impact on his creative work.
"architecture"
He began to focus on creating a series of works that he called ``.''
"DOGLE SUIT" is one of them. In 2012, he won the top prize at the "1st Matsumoto International Art Exhibition un do" (Matsumoto City Museum of Art) in Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture. The "architecture" series also won the 410 Gallery Award at the "Dynamic Contemporary Artists Exhibition" (Fukuoka Asian Art Museum) in Fukuoka.
Business cards are also unique works of art
A strange architecture made of stacked dice
His solo exhibition at the 410 Gallery featured a lineup of masterpieces designed to heighten the viewer's inspiration, including works with game character motifs, colorful works with overlapping acrylic panels that scatter light, and strange structures made of stacked dice. Born in 1975, he is 49 years old. His late-blooming talent continues to evolve. (Writer Todo Ramon)
Takashi Ito solo exhibition
"Tower of B and Inspirational Creatures"
2024.9/13(Fri)-9/16(Mon)
Ever since I was a child, I've had trouble expressing my feelings through words. I feel like other people just assume that I'm "someone who doesn't think about anything" unless I express them in words. Still, I feel like I've been able to connect with others and society by creating things.
I create with the idea in mind that we all have words in our hearts, even if we don't put them into words.
Awards: Selected for the Japan Craft Exhibition, Japan Craft Exhibition, Asahi Contemporary Craft Exhibition, ART DECORATION 2023 410 Gallery Award, Brain Brunn Art Award 2023 Grand Prize, 11th Dynamic Contemporary Artists Exhibition Grand Prize, Kankaku Exhibition #1 Kankaku Award, Independent Tokyo 2023 Kamiya Takahisa Award, 12th Dynamic Contemporary Artists Exhibition Special Award, 100 People 10 Selection
Kenji Moroi
Solo Exhibition
My prayers
2024.2/22(thu)-2/27(tue)
Kenji Moroi creates plastic sculptures of people with unique shapes and costumes, exuding a somewhat sacred air. Looking back on his 10th year as an artist, he will be exhibiting works that express in various forms the "prayers" and "wishes" that arise between his daily life and his work.
Kenji Moroi
Born in Saga on March 29, 1988
[Major awards received]
Selected for the 40th, 42nd, 43rd, 44th, 45th, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th Nitten Exhibitions, Selected as a Special Selection for the 10th Nitten Exhibition and Nitten Exhibition Associate Exhibition
Nana Solo Exhibition
Heart - Shape, Color, Song
2023.12/23(Sat)-12/26(Tue)
