HELLO RYO AND THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO WORK WITH 4BYSIX ON THEIR CURRENT VEHICLES FOR CHANGE INITIATIVE. 

TO START, CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT YOUR INITIAL INTRODUCTION TO CALLIGRAPHY AND HOW THAT PRACTICE EVOLVED INTO YOUR BETTER KNOWN ENSO AND HALO PAINTING SERIES’? 

My experience as a gardener and my engagement with calligraphy have had a significant influence on my work. 

Gardening was part of my family business, so it was something I was familiar with from an early age. I myself also worked as a gardener for many years. Through that experience, I learned not only about creating gardens, but also about Eastern thought, particularly Zen. I first encountered Western calligraphy by chance, when I happened to watch a video of someone practicing calligraphy. I was drawn to its appeal, which was different from that of Japanese calligraphy. Gradually, I became less interested in the act of writing letters themselves and more interested in the repetition of the act of writing. 

It was through these experiences that I began my “enso” series. The series grew out of my attempt to confront my own existence through the enso, the circle in Zen calligraphy; the patterns drawn in the gravel of Japanese dry gardens; and the repetition of the act of painting. 

In the “Halo” series, I continue to develop the concept of “enso” while introducing light and color as new themes. 

Light certainly exists before us, yet we cannot see light itself as a physical substance. I believe there is something in this that connects to the nature of our own existence.

YOU RECENTLY JOINED 4BYSIX’S INITIATIVE WHICH INVOLVES MAKING A NEW ARTWORK ON AN UNCONVENTIONAL CANVAS MADE FROM REPURPOSED MATERIALS, CAN YOU TELL US WHAT DREW YOU TO PARTICIPATE? WAS THERE ANYTHING IN PARTICULAR ABOUT 4BYSIX WHICH RESONATES WITH YOUR OWN ETHOS?

I had been interested in 4BYSIX’s activities for some time. One of the reasons was that artists I know had previously participated in their projects. 

What particularly interested me about this project was the transformation of the tarpaulin. It once existed within the context of logistics and transportation, serving a practical function on trucks. Through paint, however, it enters into a new relationship with me and begins to exist in another form. 

A material that was originally used to transport goods takes on a new meaning and a new way of existing through art after its original function has come to an end. I was interested in this transformation, which is what drew me to participate in the project.

HOW DID YOU FIND WORKING ON THE REPURPOSED LORRY TARPAULIN AS A CANVAS AND WHAT MORE CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THE WORK YOU HAVE MADE?

The tarpaulin has a different texture from a traditional canvas, but I normally take great care in preparing the surface before I begin painting. As a result, I had no particular difficulty working on it and was able to approach the process much as I normally do. For this work, I used oil paint. The work is part of my locus series. In the “locus” series, I attempt to transform the various contradictions and conflicts that arise within me into paintings. These include elements that may initially appear to be in opposition to one another, such as East and West, stillness and movement, impulse and discipline, and street culture and fine art. Rather than simply resolving these elements by bringing them together into one side or the other, I try to make the state in which opposing elements coexist simultaneously become a painting in itself.

AS YOUR WORK EXPLORES THE IDEA OF RELATIONSHIPS ‘BETWEEN SELF AND OTHER’, I AM CURIOUS TO KNOW IF THIS PHILOSOPHY HAS EVER EXTENDED BEYOND HUMAN RELATIONSHIPS AND INTO HUMANITY'S RELATIONSHIP WITH THE EARTH WITHIN YOUR PRACTICE?

In recent years, I have become interested in the relationship between the self and the other, and I explore this question in my “Fragment” series. More specifically, I combine fragments of paintings that seem to project my own existence with materials such as wood, metal, and stone, which represent forms of existence different from my own. Through their relationship with one another, I seek to show how the form and way of being of each can change. In my work, I inscribe my own existence into time through repetitive painting within a circular structure.
At the same time, materials such as wood and stone are generated and exist within time scales different from my own.
Human beings and materials exist within different flows of time. I am interested in how, when beings that exist within these different temporalities encounter and relate to one another within a single artwork, their respective ways of existing can begin to change.

GIVEN THAT 4BYSIX SOURCES REPURPOSED MATERIALS FROM DISCONTINUED AUTOMOBILES, CAN YOU TELL US IF YOU HAVE A SIGNIFICANT CREATIVE OR PERSONAL CONNECTION TO CARS? THIS CAN INCLUDE MEMORIES OR EMOTIONAL ATTACHMENTS.

I work in a studio located in a rural area of Japan. Because of this, rather than going out to purchase materials such as art supplies myself, I often have them delivered to me through the logistics network. Experiencing the COVID-19 pandemic made me particularly aware of the people who support this system of logistics. My art materials reach me, and my completed works are then transported to other people. Behind these movements are many people, vehicles, and the larger infrastructure of logistics. It is through these connections that I am able to create my work.

FINALLY, CAN YOU TELL US WHAT IS NEXT FOR YOU AND YOUR ART PRACTICE?

I would like to continue making work while reflecting on my own existence and on the relationships between the self, others, and the world. By continuing to create better work, I hope to have the opportunity to share it with more people and to create new relationships with different people and places.