KOSAKU KANECHIKA is pleased to present Yutaka Aokiʼs solo exhibition, “Knots and Pebbles,” at our Kyobashi gallery from June 12 to July 25, 2026.

Aoki creates paintings that focus on the relationship between time and space, utilizing light as his medium. The artist engages with materials from multiple perspectives, engineering the interplay of paint drips, peeling, and stretching. Coaxing various elements in accordance with their physical properties such as paint and brushstrokes, Aoki places his paintings in a state of constant flux. While their surfaces appear simple upon first glance, one soon discovers the presence of multiple underlying layers where light, particles, and energy intersect. Viewers gain new modes of perception by shifting distance and position, or by engaging with the works without fixing their gaze.

Aoki has provided the following statement for this show, his eighth exhibition at KOSAKU KANECHIKA.

Where would one stand in a four-dimensional cube? This very inquiry sparked the investigations leading to this project. As a starting point, I adopted the inherent structure of a square as the fundamental unit. Based on this, I created a series of paintings that deconstructed this form into three distinct states: contraction, equilibrium, and diffusion.
For this exhibition, I have reversed the conventional flow of movement within the gallery space. The door usually designated as an emergency exit now serves as the primary entrance into the gallery. This exhibition is conceived as something that aligns the axis of my own body perpendicularly to the structural forms woven throughout the space.

The exhibition unfolds as an exploration into the spatial and temporal reorganization of painting, using the square as its fundamental unit. Each individual work visualizes the inherent dynamism latent within this foundational square unit, manifesting it as a transformation within space. This structural concept extends beyond mere form and composition, suggesting that painting is an entity that encapsulates time and remains in perpetual motion. In the galleryʼs smaller room, large-scale square works are positioned to visually establish this principle. Conversely, in the larger room, smaller works are arranged in an ensemble, allowing dynamic structures to permeate the entire space.

By reversing the designated entrance and exit of the venue, the exhibition also intervenes in the temporal directionality of the viewing experience. As visitors move through the gallery, shifting their perspective with every step, the shape of the space appears to be both “a part of something” as well as “all of it.” This approach challenges the conventional static painting, prompting a transformation in the viewer’s perception.

We cordially invite you to visit Yutaka Aoki’s “Knots and Pebbles,” featuring approximately ten works, including large-scale pieces and several set works.

Yutaka Aoki

Yutaka Aoki was born in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan in 1985, and is currently based in Tokyo. In 2008, he graduated from Tokyo Zokei University’s Department of Fine Arts, and received a Master of Fine Arts from the same institution in 2010. His major solo exhibitions include “multiprime” (hiromiyoshii, Tokyo, 2011), “OUTER ROOM, INNER GARDEN” (Contemporary Art Museum, Kumamoto, 2012), and “Mouvements” (Sprout Curation, Tokyo, 2014). Notable group exhibitions include “The Way of Painting” (Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery, 2014), “CHOKOKU: Modern Japanese Sculpture from its Beginning to 1980’s, Works from the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo” (Contemporary Art Museum, Kumamoto, 2019), and “A Personal View of Japanese Contemporary Art: Takahashi Ryutaro Collection” (Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, 2024). His works have been acquired by the Contemporary Art Museum, Kumamoto, and the Takahashi Ryutaro Collection.