Makoto Ishigami “Moment and Eternity”

Onishi Gallery

[Image: Makoto Ishigami "Door" (2016) oil on canvas, 46 x 36 in.]

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Onishi Project presents “Moment and Eternity,” a powerful solo exhibition by Japanese artist Makoto Ishigami. Drawn to the space between life and death, between concrete and abstract expression, Ishigami paints works that entice viewers to experience the place between dream and reality, and to linger in the possibility of living in them both.

The soft strokes of Ishigami’s paintings are rich with deep reds, shining yellows, vivid blues, and bright purples, depicting figures naked and clothed, in isolation and in action. The colorful scenes are glimpses into worlds where ethereal atmospheres convey the feelings, thoughts, and gestures of the individuals who inhabit them. As Makoto Ishigami writes of the concept behind his work, “The infinite past and the infinite future are included in the momentary thought and action in which all lives meet…” Ishigami expresses this infinite past and infinite future in his timeless images by setting them in floating realities. Ishigami says he paints to give others hope and courage, and through the mystery and promise that his images convey, he does just that.

Born in Shizuoka, Japan in 1953, Ishigami chose to become a painter after viewing Delacroix’s work. He then learned under Tozuka Shuzo and studied fine arts at Ochanomizu Art Academy in Tokyo.