September 2021

Sharing exciting news with you that I am part of the #CityArtistCorps. As a recipient of the CAC Grant, so much gratitude is sent to the City Artist Corps partnered with NYFA (New York Foundation for the Arts) and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA), with support from the Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment (MOME).


In association to the City Artist Corps Grants, I will be participating to a group exhibition at a non-profit art center in Brooklyn, New York. I will present and display my recent collage paintings from the series "Regeneration 2021" at WAH Center (Williamsburg Art & Historical Center),135 Broadway, Williamsburg Brooklyn, NY 11211

This exhibition will be open to public for free during the gallery hours. Exhibition is titled "AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL: The Real and The Imagined" in conjunction with Smithsonian Magazine's Museum Day, from September 18 to November 13, 2021. The theme of this group art show is to shed light to a world in unity, beauty, happiness and the inclusiveness. 

My two paintings in the show are made with the plastic waste fragments I have been collecting at New York City public beaches. With these works, my intension is to raise awareness in the environmental issues. Audiences will have an opportunity to get an intimate look at my paintings in detail. The work's concepts relate to the issues regarding "nature", "water", "urban" and "man-made" as well as issues of sustainability.  

The exhibition will start on September 18 and continue through November 13, 2021 on Saturdays & Sundays between 1 pm to 5 pm. Opening Reception will be held on Saturday, September 18, 1-5pm, 2021. As per the Covid-19 protocol, masks, vaccination record card and social distance are required for attendance and gallery visits.   

August 2021

One of my paintings will be included in the upcoming group show at VAN DER PLAS Gallery, Lower East Side from August 11 to August 22, 2021. If you are around Downtown Manhattan, please stop by! Opening reception is held on August 12, Thursday between 6  to 8pm at the gallery.

"Regeneration 2021 – Skin 01", plastics & ceramic collage on canvas, 11"x14" (30cm x 36cm)  

“Regeneration 2021” is a series of ongoing paintings created since spring of 2021. I developed a way of incorporating found objects onto the painting surface. Collaged pieces consist of fragmented plastics and other found objects collected on public beaches of New York City. These objects were edited, then collaged on canvas, then edited again as abstract visual elements.  This process contributed as a painterly aspect of the surface, as it left shadows of glues and gel medium on the canvas.  

The work included at the group exhibition titled “ALL ART + Summer Salon”, relates to a branch of modern and contemporary art history. It is reminiscent of Supremacist's “Non-Objective” or Malevich’s “white on white” paintings. It also references Cubists' collages and Jasper John's flag paintings, where the object represents the symbol of itself.  Painting occupies the ambiguous area between "objecthood" and "pure abstraction". My work attempts to bring back the painting into the realm of “Objecthood”, and yet it can also be perceived as pure abstraction under ambient light conditions, in which painting will be shown. It also suggests the environmental issues of plastic contamination of the earth. The work reminds us of our time and place in history. 

May 2021

One of my paintings will be included in the upcoming salon/survey style group show at VAN DER PLAS Gallery, Lower East Side from May 14 to May 23, 2021. If you are around Downtown Manhattan, please stop by!

Please click here for the gallery link to "ULTRA LOCAL" – GROUP SHOW  

"Gift from Afterlife 04 - Red phase - after Max Ernst", acrylic & collage on canvas, 8"x10" (20cm x 25cm)

“Gift from Afterlife” was created in August of 2020. I adopted a new way of incorporating collage elements onto the painting surface. Collaged pieces are fragments from destroyed paintings or they are the peeled skins of painted surfaces. They refer back to the act of painting or peeling off the painting (thus destroying the paintings). The title not only alludes to the recycled nature of material itself, but it also invites the viewers to contemplate the world transformed by the arrival of Covid 19. As an artist living in the hardest hit area of NYC, this painting is both a regenerative talisman and a “memento mori” born out of the darkest months of pandemic.

January 2021

PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE—January 5, 2021
CONTACT: Makoto Kishino, NYC, NY
Email: KishinoArtStudio@gmail.com
Makoto Kishino, “Breath of the light - Precious Stone Series (P.S.S.)” 

RELEASE OF A SERIES OF PAINTINGS INSPIRED BY NATURE, LIGHT & PRECIOUS STONE 

New York based artist Makoto Kishino will release a series of 16 small acrylic paintings. They are on smooth clayboard sized 5x7 inches (8 11/16 x 10 ¾ inch with frame) inspired by the theme of “precious stones” and the light found in nature and within ourselves. Each painting celebrates life, hope, connections and our shared desire for a better future. 

While COVID-19 is leaving behind a difficult memory of 2020-21 and continuous to cause havoc around the world, it has also come to show our collective resilience to overcome even the most difficult of circumstances. From re-imagining work/home life to finding ways to connect with others in the era of social distancing, from shear reality of life/death conditions inside hospitals to literally deciding between food or rent, we are pushing forward with faith and commitment to a better society.  

Kishino explains, "My art is inspired by nature and the presence of “light”, “space” and “sacred”. In PRECIOUS STONE painting series, I celebrate the luminous & benevolent light found through nature, and the light shining through objects you can tangibly hold on your palm, like precious gem stones. These paintings are spiritual re/presentation of the energy of nature and light resonating within our spirit. Through these paintings, I intend to align the energy of nature with that of viewer’s consciousness and perception." 

New painting series “Breath of the light - Precious Stone Series (P.S.S.)” will be accessible through his website’s online viewing room. Visitors can scroll through the images of outdoor temporary site-specific exhibition, and to view the paintings in Autumn & Winter Collections. 

Makoto Kishino is a New York-based artist with years of experience in art and architectural design. 
 

“Breath of the light - Precious Stone Series (P.S.S.)” will be released online COMING SOON Late January, 2021 via the artist website www.makotokishino.com and Instagram @FieldBeyondForm.  

For additional information, please contact Makoto Kishino at KishinoArtStudio@gmail.com

©Makoto Kishino 2023
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