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Kisho Kakutani

Kisho Kakutani

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Kisho Kakutani positions his work as a “tool for prompting the imagination of others,” creating paintings based on fragmentary snapshots captured with his smartphone.

For Kakutani, these snapshots are more than just records of daily life; they are poignant evidence of his own existence in a particular time and place.
However, amidst the vast accumulation of digital data, the memories of the moments captured often paradoxically wear thin, transforming into something ambiguous.
In an era saturated with indirect imagery via social media and video platforms, our visual experience has become an inseparable blend of lived reality and fabricated information.
Against the backdrop of this contemporary shift in perception, Kakutani intentionally introduces "noise" into the scenery, presenting landscapes that embrace a deliberate "difficulty of seeing."

In his representative series, such as Frosted Window and Curtain, Kakutani conceals portions of the image through blurred depictions mimicking their namesake motifs.
These obscured forms awaken the viewer's own memories and preconceptions, driving the imagination to complete the imperfect visual information.
Here, the painting functions not merely as a medium for reproducing a scene, but as an “apparatus” for activating new imagery within the viewer.

While rooted in the styles and spirituality of Japanese art, Kakutani’s work interrogates the very act of "seeing" in an age of excessive information consumption.
The imaginative margins born from this lack of clarity suggest new possibilities for painting as a physical medium, standing in counterpoint to the digitally-eroded visual experiences of the modern world.

Kisho Kakutani positions his work as a “tool for prompting the imagination of others,” creating paintings based on fragmentary snapshots captured with his smartphone. For Kakutani, these snapshots are more than just records of daily life; they are poignant evidence of his own existence in a particular time and place. However, amidst the vast accumulation of digital data, the memories of the moments captured often paradoxically wear thin, transforming into something ambiguous. In an era saturated with indirect imagery via social media and video platforms, our visual experience has become an inseparable blend of lived reality and fabricated information. Against the backdrop of this contemporary shift in perception, Kakutani intentionally introduces "noise" into the scenery, presenting landscapes that embrace a deliberate "difficulty of seeing." In his representative series, such as Frosted Window and Curtain, Kakutani conceals portions of the image through blurred depictions mimicking their namesake motifs. These obscured forms awaken the viewer's own memories and preconceptions, driving the imagination to complete the imperfect visual information. Here, the painting functions not merely as a medium for reproducing a scene, but as an “apparatus” for activating new imagery within the viewer. While rooted in the styles and spirituality of Japanese art, Kakutani’s work interrogates the very act of "seeing" in an age of excessive information consumption. The imaginative margins born from this lack of clarity suggest new possibilities for painting as a physical medium, standing in counterpoint to the digitally-eroded visual experiences of the modern world.

Curtain#99, 2026

Curtain#109, 2026

Self portrait, 2026

Scrawl#11, 2026

Frosted Window#122, 2026

Fog#9, 2026

Exhibitions

ART FAIR ASIA FUKUOKA 2026

October 1 – 4, 2026

Fukuoka, Japan

Booth: W36

Contours of Scenery

September 25 – October 10, 2026

SHIKISAISHA | Kyobashi

Contours of Scenery

Enter Art Fair 2026

August 27 – 30, 2026

Copenhagen, Denmark

03 ( GALLERY KOGURE )

Side Effects

August 27 – September 2, 2026

Tokyo, Japan

Side Effects

Booth No. : B23, D12

May 22 – 25, 2025

Beijing, China

Booth No. : B23, D12

Translation forthcoming

March 22 – April 5, 2025

SHIKISAISHA | Kyobashi

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Venue:Hotel Metropolitan Premier Taipei
Booth : No.1313

January 10 – 12, 2025

Taipei,Taiwan

Venue:Hotel Metropolitan Premier Taipei
Booth : No.1313

Room : No.1725 TOKYO CONTEMPORARY KYOBASHI

2024.12.19 Thu. - 12.22 Sun.

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Room : No.1725 TOKYO CONTEMPORARY KYOBASHI

Venue:Shanghai Exhibition Center
Booth : P09 (Empathy Gallery)

2024.11.07 Thu. - 11.10 Sun.

Shanghai, China

Venue:Shanghai Exhibition Center
Booth : P09 (Empathy Gallery)

Booth No. : A9, B13

May 23 – 26, 2024

Beijing, China

Booth No. : A9, B13

Group Exhibition Part.2 with Shikisaisha Gallery

February 17 – March 10, 2024

Empathy Gallery | Harajuku, Tokyo

Group Exhibition Part.2 with Shikisaisha Gallery

Hotel Metropolitan Premier Taipei
Room No.1216

2024.1.26 Fri. - 1.28 Sun.

Taipei,Taiwan

Hotel Metropolitan Premier Taipei
Room No.1216

Booth N02

September 22 – 24, 2023

Fukuoka, Japan

Booth N02

Translation forthcoming

September 8 – 22, 2023

SHIKISAISHA | Kyobashi

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Group Show "New wave"

April 20 – 29, 2023

SHIKISAISHA | Kyobashi

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ART FAIR TOKYO 2023

March 10 – 12, 2023

Tokyo, Japan

Booth: L012

JR東日本大飯店 台北 Hotel Metropolitan Premier Taipei
Room 1217

January 13 – 15, 2023

Taipei,Taiwan

JR東日本大飯店 台北 Hotel Metropolitan Premier Taipei
Room 1217

ホテルオークラ福岡
Room 918

September 30 – October 3, 2022

Fukuoka, Japan

ホテルオークラ福岡
Room 918

Translation forthcoming

July 7 – 16, 2022

SHIKISAISHA | Kyobashi

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News

Enter Art Fair 2026

August 5, 2026

News

Enter Art Fair 2026

Translation forthcoming

July 22, 2026

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