Artist Kaoru USUKUBO
Kaoru USUKUBO
My practice constructs painting as a reconfiguration of the relationship between world and dimensions, recomposing fragments generated through the conjunction of chance and intention via a collage-like logic.
The temporal gap between perception and inscription produces a space where intention and contingency coexist; apertures in the canvas operate as wormholes connecting dimensions.
Painting functions as an interface where multiple realities intersect, and the images that emerge are fragments of possibilities latent beyond perception.
BIOGRAPHY
| 1981 | Born in Japan. |
| 2004 | BFA in Painting, Tokyo Zokei University. |
| 2007 | MFA in Painting, Tokyo University of the Arts. |
| 2010 | PhD in Oil Painting, Tokyo University of the Arts. |
| Position: Professor, Oil Painting, Faculty of Fine Arts, Tokyo University of the Arts. |
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
| 2007 | Wandering Season (TARO NASU/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2010 | Part and the whole (Wohnmaschine/Berlin) |
| 2010 | UP logist (Wohnmaschine/Berlin) |
| 2011 | crystal moments (LOOCK/Berlin) |
| 2011 | Brightness falls from the Air (taimatz/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2012 | Crystal Voyage (Kunstverein Friedrichshafen/Germany) |
| 2017 | the Constellations (taimatz/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2018 | An experiment based on an accidental (taimatz/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2021 | SF – Seamless Fantasy (MA2 Gallery/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2022 | the circles open (rin art association/Gunma, Japan) |
| 2023 | She Is. (FARO/Tokyo, Japan) |
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
| 2005 | Japan–Korea Contemporary Painting Exhibition: Nature and I (Korea) |
| 2005 | HOPE: Korea–Japan Art Exchange Exhibition (Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2007 | Art Award Tokyo Marunouchi 2007 (Gyoko-dori Underground Gallery/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2008 | Opening Exhibition II (TARO NASU/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2008 | Network Project Japan (Inter Alia Art Company/Seoul) |
| 2008 | The 17th Annual Scholarship Recipients Exhibition (The Sato Museum of Art/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2008 | Only One (Taipei) |
| 2008 | Giovane Seta '09 (Onward Gallery/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2010 | VOCA: The Vision of Contemporary Art 2010 (The Ueno Royal Museum/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2011 | Tokyo Frontline (3331 Arts Chiyoda/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2011 | Yokohama Triennale 2011 "OUR MAGIC HOUR" (Yokohama Museum of Art/Kanagawa, Japan) |
| 2011 | The 20th Annual Scholarship Recipients Exhibition (Special Presentation) (The Sato Museum of Art/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2012 | The 21st Annual Scholarship Recipients Exhibition (Special Presentation) (The Sato Museum of Art/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2013 | MINIMAL/POST MINIMAL (Utsunomiya Museum of Art/Tochigi, Japan) |
| 2013 | The 9th Formative Artist Exhibition (Tokyo Zokei University Museum/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2014 | @IOSSELLIANI T-02-IOS pratique vol.0 (IOSSELLIANI/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2015 | Wabi Sabi Shima (Thalie Art Foundation/Brussels, Belgium) |
| 2015 | CSP3 – Picture and Sculpture (Kuwasawa Design School/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2016 | Kaoru Usukubo and Hannes Beckmann (LOOCK Galerie/Berlin, Germany) |
| 2017 | Kakegawa Chaennale (Kakegawa Castle/Shizuoka, Japan) |
| 2017 | Portrait Expression (The Sato Museum of Art/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2019 | WOMAN – Copper and Willow – (MA2 Gallery/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2019 | U40 (Obayashi Collection/Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2020 | Kaoru Usukubo and Daisuke Ohba (LOOCK/Berlin, Germany) |
| 2023 | TOKYO Biennale 2023 (Tokyo, Japan) |
| 2025 | Kaoru Usukubo and Daisuke Ohba (Imura Art Gallery/Kyoto, Japan) |
| 2025 | AATM Prize Winners Exhibition (Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum/Tokyo, Japan) |
ART FAIRS
| 2006 | VOLTA (Basel, Switzerland) |
| 2007 | VOLTA (Basel, Switzerland) |
| 2008 | NEXT 2008 (Chicago) (presented by TARO NASU as solo booth/Chicago) |
| 2018-2026 | ARTISTS' FAIR KYOTO (Kyoto, Japan) |
AWARDS & GRANTS
| 2004 | ZOKEI Prize (Tokyo Zokei University Graduation Exhibition) |
| 2007 | Teikyo University (Yamanashi, Japan) |
PUBLIC/PRIVATE COLLECTIONS
| Teikyo University (Yamanashi) |
| Special Nursing Home GREEN (Akita, Japan) |
| The Sato Museum of Art (Tokyo, Japan) |
SELECTED ARTWORKS
“The Third Path”, 2025
Oil on panel
160.0 x 160.0 cm / 62.9 x 62.9 in
“Bananas are berries, but strawberries are not.”, 2026
Oil on panel
40.5 x 31.5 cm / 15.9 x 12.4 in
Series: Fragment Mechanics
“The Blue Bird”, 2025
Oil on canvas
45.5 x 45.5 cm / 17.9 x 17.9 in
“Forgotten Verses,” 2025.
Oil on canvas
10.0 x 10.0 cm / 3.9 x 3.9 in
“An Almond Flower Language,” 2022.
Oil and mixed media on panel
130.0 x 130.0 cm / 51.1 x 51.1 in