From May 24 to July 22, 2023, Clavé Fine Art, in collaboration with the Verona gallery Studio la Città, presents the work of Japanese-American artist Jacob Hashimoto.
In a space redesigned by architect Kengo Kuma, Clavé Fine Art presents 14 monumental, colorful works by Jacob Hashimoto, including pieces from his renowned series of bamboo kites and paper kites, a selection that interacts with the space. The artist's use of lightweight materials resonates with the gallery walls, which Kengo Kuma has covered in "washi," a Japanese papier-mâché technique. This exhibition is part of a rich European exhibition by Jacob Hashimoto. This summer, the artist will be featured at Studio la Città in Verona, Italy.
Inspired by light and color, like wall hangings composed of thousands of miniature kites, Hashimoto's works are both architecture, with precise three-dimensional structures, and paintings, with color effects extracted from the paper's surface. The tension of his work, but also the visual richness, and his exploration of precise luminous dimensions—both literal and metaphorical—give it an indescribable poetry.
Jacob Hashimoto's pieces are handcrafted and suspended from nylon threads, inviting the eye to wander through them with their delicate levitation. Using a unique process, the artist creates new landscapes from multiple perspectives in the form of accumulations of richly patterned circles, like so many references to nature, water, and vegetation. Jacob Hashimoto's work speaks of immensity, space, air, and infinity, and of the control of nature and the human experience. Influenced by video games and vibrantly colored virtual worlds, as well as by the cosmology through which Japan has built its identity, his wall-mounted works in the gallery demonstrate a natural curiosity for the digital age. Between sculptures, paintings, and installations, critical art, popular culture, and ancestral Japanese techniques, the artist describes a world where fantasy and meditation are closely intertwined with tradition and modernity. The visual complexity of his compositions and the lightness of the materials accompany the visitor on a sensory journey, imbuing them with a feeling of wonder and astonishment.
Jacob Hashimoto's work explores the possible intersections between painting and sculpture, figuration and abstraction, nature and artifice. A very recent mural series exhibited at Clavé Fine Art (completed in 2022) notably reveals this study of the oscillations between landscape and abstraction. In fact, in his works, Hashimoto articulates an increasingly new definition of space and time, and explores the dreamlike side of nature, which alters perspective and meaning in relation to the point of observation, stimulating the viewer's interest in the meditative experience. The artist uses certain stylistic elements borrowed from Japanese culture, such as bamboo and paper for kites, which he recombines to create imposing installations and interactive devices in the form of sculptures that invade the exhibition space.
Hashimoto's kites not only represent the connection between heaven and earth, but also serve as canvases for a myriad of abstract organic shapes and patterns.
His work raises fundamental questions about the nature of representation and its connection to our understanding of the world. The remarkably diverse images, patterns, and textures interwoven in these colorful landscapes are the result of an intersection of sources of inspiration such as religion, mathematics, design, biology, and architecture. All of these languages and disciplines are concentrated in landscapes, worlds constructed from our shared and diverse histories. Jacob Hashimoto's work consists of frescoes of time, humanity, loss, change, ambition, and beauty, a meditation on order and the world. The artist's installations seek to understand how our methods of representation change over time and reflect the shifting context of our experience of the world—all constructed from kites, pan-cultural objects that fundamentally illustrate the undeniable and confounding connection between humans and the world as it is.
Alongside the Clavé Fine Art exhibition, Jacob Hashimoto will also be in the spotlight in Italy. The American artist will be exhibiting at Studio la Città in Verona from June 24 to September 30. The contemporary art gallery will host a solo exhibition of the artist's recent and previously unseen works.
About Jacob Hashimoto
Inspired by his Japanese roots and heritage (born in Greeley, Colorado, USA; lives and works in Brooklyn, New York), Jacob Hashimoto creates monumental installations by assembling paper and bamboo elements. Connected by a complex system of chains, wooden structures, and rods attached to walls, these elements form fragments of natural and artificial landscapes composed of colorful, geometric, and plant motifs. His work reflects his interest in an art that emerges from the intersection of abstraction and figuration, painting and sculpture. Jacob Hashimoto is represented in Europe by Studio la Città – Verona.
About Clavé Fine Art
Clavé Fine Art is a modern and contemporary art gallery offering a unique exhibition space in the heart of Paris's Left Bank. Located in César's former studio, redesigned by Japanese architect Kengo Kuma, Clavé Fine Art opened its doors in 2021. Hidden from view from the outside, the gallery's interior is striking in its volume and the light emanating from the walls and ceiling made of 'washi', a Japanese papier-mâché craft. The space offers an intimate setting where exhibitions create a dialogue between works and spaces. The gallery strives to offer a program centered around established and recognized artists, while striving to present new works on the market. Clavé Fine Art also seeks to collaborate with emerging artists to promote future young talents.
André Tirlet
Photos: © Studio Vanssay
