< About New Works > Hara Hiroshi

I have been researching the characteristics of materials and creating works based on the theme of "the beauty of bare bones". For several years, I have been working with a technique of fixing oil smoke directly onto supports such as Japanese paper and canvas, staring at the forms that appear instantaneously, and cutting out beautiful forms.

In this solo exhibition, I have tried to develop various expressions of sumi ink, mainly on handmade Japanese paper, which I have been researching for a decade.
I attempted to expand the possibilities of expression with sumi ink by burning vegetable oil and collecting soot in an unglazed vessel and fixing it with glue, placing solid sumi ink directly on Japanese paper and blotting it with black color, and scattering powdered sumi ink and dissolving it on the paper surface. I also introduced the compositional elements of point, line, and plane, which are the basis of pictorial expression, as well as the accidental forms I have used in the past.


< My Thoughts on Painting Expression > Hara Hiroshi

Today, pictorial expression has reached an deadlock, and artists are shifting to various methods of expression. It has been the basis of human expression for about 30,000 years since the oldest wall paintings of Altamira and Lascaux, and geniuses in the past have presented great expressions to the public one after another. And even today, it continues to live on, transcending the differences of civilizations.

I feel the genealogy of intelligence and vitality in this great act of mankind. As a person of expression, I would like to continue to challenge myself to go beyond the limits of my own consciousness and expression in order to inherit and depict them.

Artist Name: HARA Hiroshi 　Real name: TANIKAWA Hiroshi

Born in Takamatsu City, 1956. Graduated from Tama Art University, Department of Painting, 1979 Born in Kagawa, Japan in 1956, Hara majored in oil painting at Tama Art University. After experimenting with various materials such as glass and bark, since 2003, he has been using handmade Japanese paper and ink (Suiboku-ga technique) to create minimalistic works on the theme of "phenomenon and action". Currently, he is not concerned with the material of expression in his work. He believes that self-expression is born from an internal necessity and that it is important to compare the self (our culture) with others (other cultures).
He has participated in numerous exhibitions including Art Fair Tokyo (2008-2010), Art HK (Hong Kong, 2010), Art Taipei 2012 (Taipei, 2012), Unbound Perspectives Exhibition (New York, 2012), Kagawa Yamanami Art Festival (Kagawa Prefecture, 2013-2019). He has participated in many exhibitions such as Art Taipei 2012 (Taipei, Taiwan, 2010), Unbound Perspectives Exhibition (New York, 2012), Kagawa Yamanami Art Festival (Kagawa, 2013-2019).

Solo Exhibitions
2024 “Hiroshi Hara Exhibition: With the Kaiganji Temple Barrier Paintings,” Nakatsu Banshoen Marugame Museum, Marugame, Kagawa , 2023 “Hiroshi Hara × Hiroko Tanikawa Exhibition,” Artland Gallery, Marugame, Kagawa, 2022 “Hiroshi Hara 1975–2022,” Art Echo Gallery, Manno, Kagawa
2019 Kamado Hall (Sakaide, Japan), 2016 Art Beatus HK (Hong Kong), 2012, 14-17, 19,21 Artland Gallery (Marugame, Japan), 2007, 08, 10, 15, 18 Gallery Natsuka (Ginza, Kyobashi, Tokyo), 2008 Art Beatus Van ( (Bankvar, Tokyo), 2008 Art Beatus Van (Bankvar, Tokyo)