Our first spring exhibtion since the pandemic, Painting Radiance: Light and Nature in the Art of Daisuke Nakano celebrates the artist's painterly skill and surveys his development over the last decade. In case you were not able to see these paintings in person, we have compiled some highlights of these paintings for you!
Daisuke Nakano Horse, 'Soaring Through the Sky', 2021
H85 ⅞ x W131 ⅛ in
H218 x W333 cm
With strong, thick lines and precise brush strokes, Daisuke Nakano’s Horse Painting contains a sense of monumentality and decisiveness. A close up of this painting reveals the intricate techniques used. The background, sheets of delicately applied silver leaf line up like tiles, absorbing and refracting light. Each horse is considered.
The paint application changes for each character in its composition. The colors blue, black, brown, and red overlap and revel their complexities on the surface of the painting. The artist paints fur patterns along the body of the white horse, These, made of individual brush strokes, feel painterly and have a directionality to them. The soft strokes of the brush add consistent texture to the painting. As the light hits the surface of the painting, these details are caught.
H71 x W71 in,
Nakano’s Red Pine screen is a two part folding painting. The tree is absolutely striking The vibrant hues of red and green painted on top of a midnight blue gives the painting an atmosphere new to Daisuke Nakano’s works. As the branches intertwine, overlap, fold, and twist, the painting feels like it is capturing a moment in time. Between gusts of a chill fall breeze, between the ruffles of the pine needles on the tree, Nakano paints arrested time and movement.
The mosaic qualities of the bark is almost abstracted in this representation. The artist, blocking out colors through drawing geometric borders around the branch, creates a juxtaposition of organic and geometric within the painting. The geometric qualities of the shapes in the painting is paired with the organic twisting of the branches. The vibrant green of the pine needles add a soft quality to the work. The thin painterly brush strokes differentiate each individual needle and similarity to the horse painting, adds unique texture.
H130 x W56 cm ( with frame )
Fragrant and bright, Nakano’s Magnolia flowers in Spring in Full Bloom are delightful and cheerful. Magnolia flowers are blooming on top of a gold leaf background. Almost pattern-like, the artist interrupts this with the addition of two spring birds perched on a branch. They quickly become buried among the elegant blooms.
The blush pink of the flowers are soft and subtle, the lack of definite lines in the flowers add to their soft qualities. The gentle, delicate petals are thus emphasized. The gold leaf background reflects light and warmth perfectly, moving forward the detailed flowers and their branches.
H64 x W38 ¼ in,
Deeply textural and emotional, Monkey by Daisuke Nakano tells a story of family and life. One of his earlier works from 2010, this painting represents the artist’s affinity for nature and desire to find human connection with animals through illustrious composition.
Using the same brush technique as he does in his ‘Soaring Through the Sky” 2021, the fur, short and long, are represented on the monkeys. Without harsh lines and stiff angles, the painting is soft and gives off a feeling of warmth, of safety. When looking closely, one can see that in the composition of the painting, there is not a single solid colored surface. The colors are all applied with singular brush strokes, giving the entire painting depth and texture.
H71 x W71 in,
Painted in 2016, Nakano’s Snowy World represents his development in painting, Exhibiting his new use and innovated technique in silver leaf application, Snowy World is just like the title says - a nature scape of a winter transitioning into spring. The artist ingeniously uses the silver leaf on the background to mimic the reflective qualities of bright, white snow.
The sweet ferret peers at us through branches, the soft and short qualities of his coat are meticulously painted through individual brush strokes. The artist, through a clever use of color, paints the waxy qualities of resilient winter leaves. The mix of greens, oranges and soft reds add dimension to the work. The soft blue-grey shadows of the snow create an illusion of depth to an otherwise rather flat painting. Snowy World, filled with spring innocence, brightens up the space immediately with a sense of wow.
H64 x W38 ¼ in,
Similar to Nakano’s 201 Monkey, Deer is an extremely textural painting. The painting itself is directional. The deer seem to be galloping into the distance. A close up of the painting reveals the individual brush strokes that make up the soft, heart shaped bottoms of Nakano’s deer.
If interested in any of these pieces shown, email us at mail@ippodogallery.com or simply fill out a contact form in our contact page!
