One of my favorite artist’s philosophies comes from the great Zen Master and artist, Hakuin Ekaku. He poses that the inner character of the artist shinning through the painting gives a work its power. With that in mind, these paintings explore and encompass all of my interests in art: gouache painting, figures, fashion Illustration and Zen. Based loosely on the surrealist art game, "exquisite corpses," these modern gouache paintings combine delicate brushstrokes and bright colors to create unforgettable characters.
The title, which translates to "Illusion Society" in English, serves as a metaphor for the nature of the work and the philosophy it originates from. In reality, each painting is really just a series of brushstrokes, which on their own, mean nothing. Collectively though, they form to make these figures, these people, come to life. As a collective, a society. One figure holds the others up, and vice versa.
It's a nice way to think about people, too.
