T S U K A S A K A N A W A Solo Exhibition

8.03.18 – 8.26.18

Tsukasa Kanawa is a Japanese contemporary artist based out of New York City. Kanawa got his start as an artist making graffiti art at age 14. He approached fine art through a graphical lens, studying Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop and going on to major in Design. After graduating Kougei High School in 2005, Kanawa left Nagoya, Japan to pursue art in New York City.

Kanawa is influenced by traditional Japanese art, 80s and early 90s pop art in New York, and hybrid Japanese art. He seeks stylistic inspiration from the Kanō and Rinpa schools of painting, cubism, and geometric composition, and the works of Richard Lindner, Itō Jakuchū, Kanō Hōgai, Miró, Soga Shōhaku, and Kanō Sansetsu. Building on his experience as a graffiti artist, a designer, and a fine artist, Kanawa combines traditional Edo-era techniques with elements of street art to compose visually striking works.

Kanawa’s use of calligraphy brushes in combination with spray paint and sponge rollers assists in creating evocative, almost dreamlike imagery that draws deeply on both his study of traditional art and work as a contemporary artist. He contrasts vivid colors with thick black lines, echoing the boldness and decorativeness of Kanō school painting and the freeflowing form of graffiti art, and breathing a mesmerizing energy into his work.