To celebrate the relocation and grand opening of our new exhibition space (1F Kurokawa bldg., 4 Kaitaicyo, Shinjuku-Ku, Tokyo), Maki Fine Arts is pleased to present Cool Breeze On The Rocks, a solo show by Shunsuke Kano starting Saturday, April 4, 2015.

Born 1983 in Osaka, Kano has been presenting works suggesting the possibility of a different interpretation for photographs and imagery through a unique approach that breaks out of the traditional framework of photographic expression.

He received high acclaim in 2014 from the group exhibition Photography Will Be at the Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art and his solo show Shunsuke KANO | Jenga and Fountain for the 8th shiseido art egg (Shiseido Gallery, Tokyo). In his third solo show with Maki Fine Arts, Kano will showcase works from his "specious notion" series comprised of photographs captured during his recent visit to the Netherlands.

At first glance, "specious notion" may seem like typical snap shots of run-of-the-mill scenery in the city, but with closer examination, visual obscurities begin to emerge; spatial ambiguity among the objects in the photographs start to trick the viewer's eyes as objects initially seen in the foreground now appear in the back. Without the clear presence of depth, it is as though the cross-sectional surfaces have been cut out and then the layers blended and compressed together into a unique viewing surface. The viewers are unable to ignore the flatness found in the three-dimensional landscape.
Since beginning production of "specious notion" in 2011, the artist has captured scenery overlooking subjects including billboards, fences, and glass panes. With calculated composition, masterful focusing, and a method that interlocks a variety of elements and information, Kono has created a mechanism that will surely shake the viewer's perception.