Maki Fine Arts is pleased to present soft construction, a solo show by Yutaka Watanabe starting Saturday, April 1, 2017.
Born 1981 in Tokyo, Watanabe received his MFA in 2007 from Musashino Art University with a concentration in painting. Major solo shows include The good old things is new forever at switch point (2016), Melting land at JIKKA (2015), and his solo exhibition at 8/ ART GALLERY, Koyama Tomio Gallery (2013).
Watanabe's paintings are known for melding fantastical images with organic forms, wandering the space between abstract and concrete. His new works are stratified--elements of the many color structures gently layered over each other-- adding a unique rhythm and tension to his creations. This will be Watanabe's first solo show with Maki Fine Arts.

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Regarding Yutaka Watanabe: The reality of color sense and tactile sense
Hitoshi Yamamura (Director of Curatorial Section, Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum)

I first encountered Yutaka Watanabe's paintings in his studio for the graduate program at Musashino Art University. Back then, the subject matters he chose to paint were animals and the interior of rooms. What struck me was the richness of the surfaces found within the hues and spaces. Multi-colored hues in varying sizes resonated with each other and created harmony. Later, when his paintings were showcased as part of a Fuchu Art Museum show, they created a space reminiscent of an empty lot surrounded by buildings or a structure placed on a residential front yard. His sharp use of translucent textures helped make the table cloths, walls, curtains, brick walls, decorative patters, and brush strokes come alive, making the spaces on the paintings fun and boisterous. In short, Watanabe's paintings possess a reality that activates the viewer's color sense and tactile sense; they are humorous and seemingly playing innocent.
In recent years, his works have evolved into expressing fantastical spaces that resemble clay. It feels as though his paintings have increased in flatness, becoming more abstract and perhaps even baroque-esque. Watanabe does not fear change. His works, while seemingly consistent, contain omissions; while looking complete, there is also a feeling of deficiency. Every time I view his works, I leave the various galleries half disappointed and half freshly inspired. I repeatedly encounter a vexing and unique painting experience. I find myself roaming from gallery to gallery, standing in front of his world with hesitation, not quite sure that I'm understanding what's in front of me. In what direction is Watanabe's paintings heading? In any case, I always look forward to seeing the richness of the surface found within the hues and spaces.