Art Collaboration Kyoto: Advisory Selections

Art Collaboration Kyoto is a new fair setting out to forge partnerships between Japanese and international galleries. With 54 galleries participating this year, including Blum & Poe, The Club, Kavi Gupta, Fortes D'Aloia & Gabriel, and Taka Ishii Gallery, its size remains comparatively intimate, yet the list of those involved speaks volumes about the fair's quality.

Ahead of opening night on 4 November, Ocula's Advisory team present their favourite works from the fair.

Eli Bornowsky, H38Dmod12_14_15_18x18grid_to_Hex (2020). Egg tempera, gesso, muslin, baltic birch. 76 x 76 cm. Courtesy the artist and King's Leap.

Eli Bornowsky at King's Leap

Young Canadian artist Eli Bornowsky creates egg tempera paintings formed of tessellating colours that create a unique optical experience.

Having graduated from the Milton Avery Graduate School of the Arts with an MFA in 2014, Bornowsky's work has been included in a number of solo and group exhibitions worldwide, including Burnaby Art Gallery in Burnaby, Canada (2015), Unit 17 in Vancouver (2017), and Canton Sardine in Vancouver (2020).

New York-based gallery King's Leap bring this softly hued work to Art Collaboration Kyoto alongside two others. The artist is also included in gallery KAYOKOYUKI's 10th anniversary group exhibition in Tokyo until 7 November 2021.

Simon Fujiwara, Masks (Merkel) (2015). Make-up on linen. 126 x 96 x 6 cm (framed). Courtesy Taro Nasu.

Simon Fujiwara at Taro Nasu

British-Japanese artist Simon Fujiwara works across media including painting, photography, installation, film, and sculpture.

Following studies at Cambridge University, where he received a BA in architecture in 2005, the artist continued his interdisciplinary practice at the Städelschule in Frankfurt am Main, receiving his MFA in 2008.

Having had an itinerant upbringing across Japan, Europe, and Africa, his works often form complex installations that combine autobiographical elements to explore identity construction.

Hilarie Hon, Sunlight Murmur VII (2021). Oil on plywood box, acrylic and oil on canvas. 20 x 30; 28 x 38 x 9.7 cm. Courtesy the artist and Gallery EXIT.

Hilarie Hon at Gallery EXIT

Hong Kong artist Hilarie Hon creates surreal landscapes using a vibrant palette, some of which are encased in wooden cabinets, as with this work.

As the artist has explained in Tatler Hong Kong, 'Painting is very personal, very private. Sometimes it doesn't feel very necessary to me to show it to anyone. It actually bothers me a lot. So, with the cabinets, the viewer has the option to not look at the painting.'

Wade Guyton, Untitled (2020). Epson ultrachrome HDX inkjet on linen. 91.4 x 68.8 cm. Courtesy the artist and Galerie Gisela Capitain.

Wade Guyton at Galerie Gisela Capitain

Wade Guyton is an American artist who uses digital technologies, such as inkjet printers and flatbed scanners, to generate abstract compositions.

The glitchy outcomes are drenched in pigment, as seen in this purple-hued untitled work being shown by Galerie Gisela Capitain, summoning an exploration into image production and decay.

Since graduating with an MFA from Hunter College in New York, the artist has exhibited at galleries and institutions worldwide, most recently the Museum Ludwig, Cologne (2019); Museum Brandhorst, Munich (2017); and the Musée d'art moderne et contemporain, Geneva (2016).

Kour Pour, Mountain Deity in the Autumn fog (2020). Block printing ink and collage on paper. 77.47 x 57 cm (framed size 81 x 60.5 cm). Courtesy the artist and Kavi Gupta.

Kour Pour at Kavi Gupta

Los Angeles-based artist Kour Pour creates bold woodblock prints that contain motifs pulled from different cultures, with influences spanning hip-hop, Persian carpet prints, and Japanese ukiyo-e prints.

The artist's work will be featured in a solo exhibition at the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art in Tehran in 2022—a presentation that follows his exhibition Familiar Spirits at Kavi Gupta in the summer of 2021 exploring the construction of personal histories.

The tiger is a recurring motif for the artist, pulled from historical ink paintings originating from China, Korea, and Japan.

Inka Essenhigh, Decomposing Forest (2019). Enamel on canvas. 111 x 101.6 cm. Courtesy the artist and Kavi Gupta.

Inka Essenhigh at Kavi Gupta

Inka Essenhigh's paintings fuse natural elements with contemporary scenes that sometimes have a haunting feel, inviting viewers to ponder their fluid, imaginary realms.

Based in New York, Essenhigh came to prominence in the 1990s with her surrealistic paintings, influenced by a range of sources, including Art Nouveau and Japanese anime.

The artist's work is currently included in New Time: Art and Feminisms in the 21st Century at Berkley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive until 30 January 2022.

Main image: Hilarie Hon, Sunlight Murmur VII (2021). Oil on plywood box, acrylic and oil on canvas. 20.0 x 30.0; 28.0 x 38.0 x 9.7. Courtesy Gallery EXIT and the artist.