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About the artist: japanese artist Daiya Yamamoto (b. 1986) received his BFA in 2010 and MFA in 2012, majoring in oil painting, from Hiroshima City University. Their photorealistic style is inspired by the rich historical tradition of trompe-l’oeil, in which the eye is tricked into perceiving a three-dimensional space within a flat surface. Yamamoto is best known for his stark, deceptively simple compositions that often center on motifs from nature, such as a single flower or small branch. The emphasis on arrangement evokes both 17th century Northern European still life painting as well as more contemporary modes of minimalism. Ultimately, Yamamoto’s work examines the limits of perception and the power of illusion.
What do you want to know: On view until July 1, 2023, Daiya Yamamoto is the subject of an exhibition To Tamenaga Gallery in Paris, the artist’s first solo with the gallery. The exhibition features the debut of around 30 new works made in the artist’s trompe-l’oeil style, which has gained traction as a movement in Japan. Although he has been included in group presentations with the gallery in Tokyo and Kyoto, this is the first opportunity for visitors to truly immerse themselves in the vision and practice of the artist alone. Highlights include a range of herbal compositions, as well as works depicting objects, such as a garden rake.
Why we love it: Daiya Yamamoto’s new body of work exposes the visual lexicon that has become central to his artistic practice. Using clean, vacant grounds for his paintings, individual elements, such as a stem of flowers or a vine of leaves, take on greater prominence, enhanced by their uniqueness within the canvas. Contributing to the visual experience of trompe l’oeil are the delicate, unobtrusive but still significant additions of supports for the central motif. In kiwi fruit spirals (2022), the coiled branch is shown held up by a length of duct tape several shades darker than the ground and apparently extends to the opposite side of the canvas. In celastre (2022), the branch is shown held aloft by several lengths of string – with the shadow of the fine threads delicately rendered to contribute to the illusion of space. The elements together create a form of contemplative and artistically rigorous painted poetry. On the work of the artist, the writer Julie Chaizemartin declared: “The tour de force of Daiya Yamamoto is to succeed in merging the heritage of the Flemish masters with the purity of Japanese aesthetics, the latter perceived in the purity of its lines and the fragile immobility of its compositions. , immutably inscribed in a fabulous balance in the white void of the background of the canvas. His works provide a seductive feeling of harmony.
See the featured works from the exhibition below.
Daiya Yamamoto, kiwi fruit spirals (2022). Photo: Jean-Louis Losi. Courtesy of Galerie Taménaga.
Daiya Yamamoto, fresie (2022). Photo: Jean-Louis Losi. Courtesy of Galerie Taménaga.
Daiya Yamamoto, celastre (2022). Photo: Jean-Louis Losi. Courtesy of Galerie Taménaga.
Daiya Yamamoto, sour yellow rays (2022). Photo: Jean-Louis Losi. Courtesy of Galerie Taménaga.
“Daiya Yamamotocan be seen at Galerie Taménaga until July 1, 2023.
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