Tomoo Gokita Exhibition

Petzel Gallery

[Image: Tomoo Gokita "Seaside Week End" (2023) Acrylic, colored pencil, pencil, and paper on canvas, 71.7 x 89.6 in.]

This event has ended.

Tokyo-based artist Tomoo Gokita presents his first solo exhibition with Petzel, opening September 14th at the gallery’s Chelsea location. Internationally renowned for pushing the boundaries of figuration, particularly in his high-contrast grayscale paintings, Gokita has shifted toward new source imagery and materials. The artist was struck by a booklet found near his studio of simple illustrations of everyday objects. Created for patients with dementia, these objects are used in an exercise that puts forward the question, “What is this?”. Gokita has developed this imagery to create colorful, fresh compositions. Influenced by Pop Art, kitsch aesthetics, and music, Gokita’s crafted canvases are covered with multiple layers of paper for the first time, including paper sleeves of various vinyl records into the layers of his paintings. Gokita’s debut at Petzel signifies a turn toward new techniques, textures, and subjects, as the artist reveals novel possibilities beyond the traditional canvas.