EXHIBITIONS
Shota Nakamura “Blue and Green”
Dates: Oct 4 – Nov 1, 2025
Location: Taka Ishii Gallery Kyobashi
Opening reception: Saturday, Oct 4, 17:00 – 19:00
Taka Ishii Gallery Kyobashi is pleased to present “Blue and Green,“ a solo exhibition of the work of Shota Nakamura, from Saturday, October 4 to Saturday, November 1. This will be the artist’s first solo exhibition at the gallery and will feature approximately 9 new paintings depicting landscapes inspired by the themes of water and the color blue, as well as scenes with trees and bathers. Concurrently, Taka Ishii Gallery Roppongi will present another solo exhibition by Nakamura titled “Orient.”
Nakamura’s practice begins with his own memories, observations, and research into diverse imagery derived from paintings, films, photographs, and other sources. He edits and reconstructs these images in compositions that take the form of landscapes, figures, and still life arrangements. Scenes in which the boundaries between gardens or landscapes and interiors seem to dissolve, and figures that convey quiet introspection, are imbued with the immersive atmosphere that characterizes Nakamura’s work.
While his earlier works featured a rich, vibrant color palette referencing influences such as Pierre Bonnard (1867–1947), Nakamura has recently turned his attention to chromatic tonalities. Reflecting his interest in the subtle nuances of gray, which appears to shift its hue depending on the surrounding colors, the paintings in this exhibition are executed in subdued tones such as gray and beige. In contrast to the heavily layered surfaces of his past works, the recent paintings adopt an approach akin to watercolor, building up layers of color with translucent oil paint.
Nakamura’s exploration of aquatic landscapes, and his ongoing dialogue between the media of oil and watercolor, point to water and its fluid qualities as essential elements that shape the artist’s visual world.
Shota Nakamura was born in 1987 in Yamanashi. He graduated from Musashino Art University in 2011 and currently lives and works in Berlin.
His solo exhibitions include “SIGHS”, C L E A R I N G (New York, 2025); “small works 2022-2024”, C L E A R I N G (Los Angeles, 2024); “light room”, C L E A R I N G (Los Angeles, 2023); “each passing day”, Peres Projects (Berlin, 2022); “Walking”, Ilwoo Space (Seoul, 2021). He has participated in group exhibitions such as “Aura Within”, Hauser & Wirth (Hong Kong, 2025); “Wings of a Butterfly”, Ingleby Gallery (Edinburgh, 2025); “Meet me by the lake”, C L E A R I N G (New York, 2024); “BERNHEIM x ADZ Gallery”, Bernheim (Zurich, 2024); “Male Nudes: a salon from 1800 to 2021”, Mendes Wood DM (São Paulo, 2021). Nakamura’s works are included in the collections of ICA Miami; Orange County Museum of Art (Costa Mesa); Lafayette Anticipations – Fondation d’entreprise Galeries Lafayette (Paris).
