A2Z Art Gallery Paris is pleased to present Genesis, the third solo exhibition of Japanese artist Shiori Eda in the gallery.

Genesis unveils a polyptych composed of six canvases size as 1M wide by 1.5M high by Shiori Eda for the first time on the theme of life. Each panel is engaging in a dialogue with her previous notable works and life experience. The journey begins with the wave that recalls of her work Tsunami that was shown in her previous solo exhibition, Visions nocturnes in 2017. The narration then guides us to a woman who is sitting on top of an iceberg, reminiscent of the previous work Chowa, which presented in 2019 in the exhibition Uni-Vers. Lastly, the flowing water falls through the bottom of an active volcano, which reminds the audience of the artist's work, entitled Hinomaru, that will be exhibited in her recent solo show. The title of the work also has the same meaning as the Japanese national flag in Japanese. The concept of the monumental work entitled Unnatural is in Nature will be continued as time goes on. Other paintings of the same format unfold the story of the artist's life. Three of her latest works from this series will be presented exclusively during Asia Now Art Fair 2020.

By revealing both biblical and philosophical questioning, Shiori Eda takes us into the reflection of a fundamental question: who are we? Human-beings always sought to know and identify their origin by embodying at the same time with their innate desire and human culture, especially those ideas tend to transform and negate the capacity of nature in all aspects.

Thus, the artist brings us into relation with nature and the figure of the female body both physically (a woman's connection to the five elements: water, wood, earth, fire, and metal) and spiritually (a naked woman sits beside a giant apple tree reminiscent of the original Eve in the Book of Genesis). Wouldn't men be just an unnatural animal extricating himself from a physical consciousness and condition to an immaterial unconsciousness?

Certain human behaviours and actions may cause contradiction to the order of nature, culture or values. What is unnatural for one person may be natural for another, and vice versa. These opposing forces are the bedrock of human development. Anomalies could be found in normality. Just as the absurd is born out of reason, the idea of antisocial exists in general based on society.

Human beings exist in themselves and for themselves, which makes them able to extract themselves from what they experience, to judge, to affirm and to deny. The notion of symbolised freedom can be glimpsed through the nudity of the human body living in the immensity of the nature depicted by Shiori Eda.

In a symbiotic relationship with their surroundings, Shiori Eda's protagonists seek their place in the eternal and universal balance of the One and the All, which human-beings maintain a difficult and ambiguous relationship with their desire and impulse in searching for happiness and freedom.

Press release courtesy A2Z Art Gallery.