Born in Tokyo in 1966, Tenmyouya Hisashi is contemporary Japanese artist whose painting practice is an amalgamation of traditional Japanese painting themes and techniques and Western Hip-Hop comtemporay culture. He calls this style of painting 'Neo Nihonga', or 'Neo Japanese Painting'. He began his painting career following a position as an art director at a record label and illustrator for an underground magazine. His Neo Nihonga painting features an ambiguous figure involved in a, sometimes violent, activity on a decorative gold background. In 2000 he developed a style called 'Butouha' which enabled him to demonstrate the resistance towards the authoritative art system, through his paintings. In 2010, he proposed another new painting style called 'Basara' which embodied the aesthetic of a Samurai warrior. He has been included in group shows since 1990. He has held a number of solo exhibitions since 2000, predominantly in Tokyo galleries but also at The Reed Space in New York.
