Shinpei Kusanagi: Something is happening which is not happening at all

Sep 1 - Oct 31, 2020
  • “Dancingiseverything,” continued the Sheep Man. “Danceintip-topform. Dancesoitallkeepsspinning.

    Ifyoudothat, wemightbeabletodosomethingforyou. Yougottadance. Aslongasthemusicplays.”

     

    – HARUKI MURAKAMI

    Dance Dance Dance (Vintage International) (p.86) Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
  • Altman Siegel is pleased to announce “Something is happening which is not happening at all” a solo presentation of works by Tokyo-based artist Shinpei Kusanagi. This exhibition will take place online and will feature new paintings that embrace possibilities for energy and movement within a world standing still.

    • Shinpei Kusanagi Pendulum, 2020 Acrylic on canvas 63 3/4 x 51 1/4 in 162 x 130.3 cm
      Shinpei Kusanagi
      Pendulum, 2020
      Acrylic on canvas
      63 3/4 x 51 1/4 in
      162 x 130.3 cm
  • The title for the exhibition is drawn from lyrics of the song "Take Time" by the band "The Books." A melodic meditation on time, the line reflects the sentiment Kusanagi tries to capture through his paintings while simultaneously echoing current societal energies, specifically the collapse and coexistence of motion and stillness. 

    • Shinpei Kusanagi KOKUKOKU, 2020 Acrylic on canvas 63 3/4 x 51 1/4 in 162 x 130.3 cm
      Shinpei Kusanagi
      KOKUKOKU, 2020
      Acrylic on canvas
      63 3/4 x 51 1/4 in
      162 x 130.3 cm
  • Kusanagi stains untreated canvases with layers of translucent color then incorporates improvisational brushstrokes in vivid hues, markings that materialize from rapid motions as well as pooling stillness. The compositions hover on the surface and then move into deep space. His atmospheric washes of color leave the paintings devoid of specific detail, conjuring memories of time and place rather than precise representation. Of memory, the artist once wrote: “it is all fatally destined to be washed away.”

    • Shinpei Kusanagi YAMABIKO, 2019 Acrylic on canvas 46 x 33.5 cm 18 1/8 x 13 1/4 in
      Shinpei Kusanagi
      YAMABIKO, 2019
      Acrylic on canvas
      46 x 33.5 cm
      18 1/8 x 13 1/4 in
    • Shinpei Kusanagi One Sunny Day, 2019 Acrylic on canvas 46 x 33.5 cm 18 1/8 x 13 1/4 in
      Shinpei Kusanagi
      One Sunny Day, 2019
      Acrylic on canvas
      46 x 33.5 cm
      18 1/8 x 13 1/4 in
    • Shinpei Kusanagi Whirlpool, 2018 Acrylic on canvas 25.8 x 36.5 cm 10 1/8 x 14 3/8 in
      Shinpei Kusanagi
      Whirlpool, 2018
      Acrylic on canvas
      25.8 x 36.5 cm
      10 1/8 x 14 3/8 in
    • Shinpei Kusanagi Sagittarious, 2018 Acrylic on canvas 25.6 x 18.6 cm 10 1/8 x 7 3/8 in
      Shinpei Kusanagi
      Sagittarious, 2018
      Acrylic on canvas
      25.6 x 18.6 cm
      10 1/8 x 7 3/8 in
  • Shinpei Kusanagi (b.1973) lives and works in Tokyo, Japan. Solo exhibitions include: Taka Ishii Gallery, Tokyo; Altman Siegel, San Francisco; Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery; Gallery Sora, Tokyo; Bankart Studio, Tokyo and Makii Masaru Fine Arts, Tokyo. Group exhibitions include: Carnegie Art Museum, Oxnard; Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo; Shane Campbell Gallery, Chicago; XYZ collective, Tokyo; The Ueno Royal Museum,Tokyo; Gallery Space Prism, Tokyo and Creation Gallery G8, Tokyo.

  • For more information please contact Altman Siegel at (415) 576-9300 or info@altmansiegel.com.