Solo exhibition "IMMANENT FOLD: The Immanent Folds of Iconography and Matter" by Keita Motooka opens.
An exhibition by Keita Motooka, the artist who received the Grand Prize at "ARTISTS’ FAIR KYOTO 2025 MYNAVI ART AWARD," will be held at the Great Drawing Room of Tofuku-ji Temple, a Rinzai Zen head temple. The exhibition is titled "IMMANENT FOLD: The Intrinsic Folds of Imagery and Material."
Motooka has focused on the pictorial aspect of his sculptures, finding a measure for his practice in the interplay between sculpture and painting, and has striven to explore new forms of existence. His work involves applying colored paper to create a painterly order while simultaneously constructing sculptural forms. In his ongoing exploration of "painterly sculpture," Motooka has turned his attention to constructing a more direct relationship between painting and sculpture. He will present his latest series, "IMMANENT FOLD," which incorporates "images" found in readymade objects, such as altered manga and works using vinyl pools, into his sculptural pieces.
The relationship between the materials and the representations that appear in the works becomes more literal, and while exploring the space between the visible imagery and the actual material, he critically questions the "informatization" of sculpture. Moving beyond the relationship between painting and sculpture, he presents a new endeavor toward a more universal relationship between imagery and material.
Artist Statement
The works presented in this exhibition are an attempt to visualize the boundary between imagery (image) and material (material) as a fold. The materials I am using are primarily everyday objects that possess lightness and fragility, such as printed matter like manga and picture books, vinyl, cloth, and air. While emphasizing their pop visuality, these materials also carry the inherent forces of their substance, such as wrinkles, distortions, and depressions. I am interested in the relationship where "imagery" and "material" do not oppose each other as separate entities, but rather fold and erode each other internally. Imagery permeates the surface of the material beyond its support, and conversely, the material pushes back against the imagery, twisting,
bending, and compressing it. These appear not merely as decoration or material research, but as an exchange of intrinsic forces. At the same time, information that would normally be instantly deciphered is stretched by the behavior of the material and lingers within the form. The "fold" is the moment when this response between imagery and material solidifies into form. I am seeking a new visibility residing in this fold, a living movement where imagery continuously transforms into material, and material into imagery.
Keita Motooka Solo Exhibition "IMMANENT FOLD: The Intrinsic Folds of Imagery and Material"
Dates: Friday, February 20, 2026 – Sunday, March 1, 2026
Hours: 9:00 – 16:00 (Last entry 15:30)
URL:https://artists-fair.kyoto/events/
Keita Motooka
Born in Hiroshima Prefecture in 1999. Completed his Master's degree in Sculpture at Tokyo University of the Arts Graduate School of Fine Arts in 2024. Currently enrolled in the Doctoral Program in the same field. He creates sculptural works using his unique technique of "distorted papier-mâché." His art explores the boundaries between sculpture and painting, generating works that seem to exist in an intermediate space. He has held solo exhibitions such as "Far Beyond the Pinned Dots" at VCCA in 2024 and "When I Lifted It, a Satellite Flew" at MATTER in 2023, and has participated in numerous exhibitions at galleries across Japan. He has also taken part in art fairs like "EASTEAST" and "ART FUTURE 2024" in Taipei, as well as triennales such as the "Miyakojima International Art Triennale."
ARTISTS’ FAIR KYOTO Executive Committee
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https://artists-fair.kyoto/