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Akiko Ando "Habitable Planet"
Leesaya
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Artists
Akiko Ando
Akiko Ando was born in Ibaraki Prefecture in 1987. After graduating with a degree in design from the Faculty of Art at Tokyo Polytechnic University, she set about a wide range of production activities. More specifically, aside from creating her own artistic works, she made illustrations and cover designs for books, and collaborated with fashion brands. The carefully rendered pictures applying various techniques including watercolor, oil painting, and collages seem to radiate a brilliant light and make the viewers feel the joy of living. In recent years, she has been attracting even more attention; she has done window displays for NEWoman Shinjuku and was selected for the Idemitsu Art Award exhibition in 2022.
In her solo exhibition New Life People held last year, she showed paintings that were the largest she had ever made. The works revolved around the theme of praise for living life in a way that should be the norm in the new age. This means not being bound by restraints in respects such as ideology and gender, respecting others, and living in a manner that is true to yourself.
Human figures that are not clearly male or female frequently appear in Ando’s paintings. She calls them “angels.” To the artist, these “angels” enveloped in a mysterious atmosphere are both abstract and concrete, and symbolize irreplaceable, esteemed things. They are also imbued with her prayers for her grandmother, who died when she was 13. Since the loss of her grandmother, who was a big figure in her life, she still asks herself what she should choose as her lifeline. Painting “angels” is synonymous with praying to live while praising life and staring at the light in everyday life. As such, it may be the answer to her question.
This exhibition shows new works that are first attempts for Ando and take familiar existences in everyday life as their motifs. These may be exemplified by chairs we always sit in, plants outside the window, and articles of clothing worn by family members and ourselves. Thus far, Ando has not used such concrete motifs in her paintings. She has apparently discovered that, by first painting the “angels” on the ground coat, she could maintain a comfortable distance with the respective motifs.
Habitable Planet (a planet that can sustain life, where we can live comfortably), the exhibition title, seems to ask us where we can find a place for us to live on this planet, or a place where we would be able to live. The question has the connotation of doubt as to whether it will be possible for us to make and keep the earth a habitable planet. We are looking forward to your visit to see the microcosmos of Habitable Planet spread out on the paintings.
In her solo exhibition New Life People held last year, she showed paintings that were the largest she had ever made. The works revolved around the theme of praise for living life in a way that should be the norm in the new age. This means not being bound by restraints in respects such as ideology and gender, respecting others, and living in a manner that is true to yourself.
Human figures that are not clearly male or female frequently appear in Ando’s paintings. She calls them “angels.” To the artist, these “angels” enveloped in a mysterious atmosphere are both abstract and concrete, and symbolize irreplaceable, esteemed things. They are also imbued with her prayers for her grandmother, who died when she was 13. Since the loss of her grandmother, who was a big figure in her life, she still asks herself what she should choose as her lifeline. Painting “angels” is synonymous with praying to live while praising life and staring at the light in everyday life. As such, it may be the answer to her question.
This exhibition shows new works that are first attempts for Ando and take familiar existences in everyday life as their motifs. These may be exemplified by chairs we always sit in, plants outside the window, and articles of clothing worn by family members and ourselves. Thus far, Ando has not used such concrete motifs in her paintings. She has apparently discovered that, by first painting the “angels” on the ground coat, she could maintain a comfortable distance with the respective motifs.
Habitable Planet (a planet that can sustain life, where we can live comfortably), the exhibition title, seems to ask us where we can find a place for us to live on this planet, or a place where we would be able to live. The question has the connotation of doubt as to whether it will be possible for us to make and keep the earth a habitable planet. We are looking forward to your visit to see the microcosmos of Habitable Planet spread out on the paintings.
Schedule | Apr 27 (Sat) 2024-Jun 2 (Sun) 2024 Opening Hours Information
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| Fee | Free | ||||
| Website | https://leesaya.jp/exhibitions/habitable-planet/ | ||||
| Venue | Leesaya | ||||
| Location | 3-14-2 Shimomeguro, Meguro-Ku, Tokyo 153–0064 | ||||
| Access | 7 minute walk from Fudomae Station on the Tokyu Meguro line. 20 minute walk from the Main exit of Meguro Station on the JR Yamanote, Namboku, Toei Mita or Tokyu Meguro line. | ||||
| Phone | 03-6881-4389 | ||||
| Related images | Click on the image to enlarge it  |
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