Es weilt im Inneren
HAGINO Masaki
aaploit is pleased to present “Es weilt im Inneren / It dwells within,” a solo exhibition by Masaki Hagino, running from Friday, September 12 through Sunday, September 28, 2025.
Masaki Hagino has dedicated his artistic practice to capturing the subjective spaces constructed by our minds through painting. His “multilayer perspective” technique does not simply mirror the external world, but attempts to realize as painting the perceptual processes occurring within us—the subjective spatial recognition happening in our brains.
In the early 15th century, the Florentine sculptor and architect Brunelleschi systematized single-point perspective, which subsequently became the standard for “objective” spatial representation in Western painting. However, our actual perception does not follow such geometrical order. Hagino’s exploration confronts this discrepancy head-on, attempting instead to reframe subjective perception itself as “realism”—a paradoxical endeavor.
The title “Es weilt im Inneren / It dwells within” symbolizes Hagino’s dual perspective as he travels between Germany and Japan. The German verb “weilen” (to dwell temporarily, to reside) indicates the workings of perception that constantly exist within us, though usually remain unconscious.
Edmund Husserl advocated for temporarily suspending (epoché) our naive belief in the objective world, examining instead how consciousness itself establishes phenomena. Hagino’s paintings likewise bracket the reproduction of the external world, attempting to capture the very perception occurring within us. White forms that appear both square and triangular—this is the perceptual fluctuation generated by Hagino’s multilayer perspective. Transparent layers of color represent something in the process of formation, attempting to take shape as space. These function as “internal realism,” speaking directly to our consciousness.
At aaploit, where natural light streams in, Hagino’s paintings will change their expression throughout the day. This transformation also reflects the movements of perception constantly being updated within us. We invite visitors to temporarily bracket predetermined judgments such as “this is landscape” or “that is form,” and encounter what dwells within yourself.
¹ Edmund Husserl. Translated by Watanabe Jiro. Ideas I—General Introduction to Pure Phenomenology. Misuzu Shobo. 1979.
About the Artist
Masaki Hagino
Born in Aichi Prefecture in 1987. Completed his master’s degree at Burg Giebichenstein University of Art and Design Halle, Germany in 2019. Working under the theme “Internal Realistic Expression—Subjective Perception and Multilayer Perspective,” he explores subjective spatial recognition in the brain through painting. While critically inheriting the problematics of perspective in Western painting history, he attempts to construct a new concept of “realism” of internal perception. Through works that show different expressions depending on the changing light and viewpoint, he simultaneously presents both the individuality and universality of perceptual experience.
Director’s Note
“Es weilt im Inneren / It dwells within”—this title quietly yet precisely captures the essence of Hagino’s practice.
The “epoché” that Husserl advocated—a return to pure consciousness through suspension of judgment. Hagino’s paintings practice this philosophical attitude visually. By temporarily suspending predetermined judgments of “this is such-and-such,” something becomes visible for the first time.
We usually don’t consciously think about how we see the world. But when standing before Hagino’s paintings, we suddenly become aware of the perceptual processes occurring within ourselves. These are things that are always there, yet usually remain hidden.
The German word “weilen,” with its nuance of dwelling that includes temporal duration, seems to express the very experience of Hagino’s paintings. Even if the time spent before the work is brief, that experience will continue to dwell within us for a long time.
In the space of aaploit, please take time to slowly encounter what dwells within yourself.
Es weilt im Inneren
- Dates
- September 12 – September 28, 2025
- Hours
- Friday, Saturday, Sunday 13:00–18:00 Viewings by appointment available on other days
- Venue
- aaploit, Tokyo
Artist
HAGINO Masaki
b. 1987
Contemporary painting artist. Born in 1987 in Japan. Based and woking in Amsterdam and Cologne. BA at Nagoya City University in Japan in 2011. Completed Diploma (MA) at Burg Giebichenstein University of Art Halle in Germany in 2019.
Research Thema : "Representation of inner reality - Dealing with subjective perception by means of a multidimensional perspective system-" - Master thesis at Burg Giebichenstein University of Art in Halle, Germany.
EDUCATION
Apprenticeship and Internship Program, Fabric Workshop and Museum, Philadelphia, U.S.A.
Guest Student, Visual Arts, Pennsylvania State University, Philadelphia, U.S.A.
BFA, Graphic and Printing, Nagoya City University
Diploma (MFA), Painting, Burg Giebichenstein University of Art Halle, Germany
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
Es weilt im Inneren, aaploit, Tokyo
Deconstruction of Painting, Ken Fine Art, Japan
Es weilt im Inneren, Mie Prefectural Art Museum Gallery, Japan
Es weilt im Inneren, Marugame Marutasu, Kagawa
Es weilt im Inneren, Eko-Haus, Düsseldorf, Germany
Es weilt im Inneren, PartoutKunstkabinett, Bergisch Gladbach, Germany
Es weilt im Inneren, Volks Park Gallery, Burg Giebichenstein Kunsthochschule, Halle, Germany
Raining, Das japanische Haus, Leipzig, Germany
What is you see, Mie
What is you see, Nagoya
Dive into him, Mie
Dear little lover, Nagoya
GROUP EXHIBITIONS (SELECTED)
Blue Period, node hotel, Kyoto
SICF (Spiral International Creator's Festival), Spiral, Tokyo
Winterausstellung, Partout Kunstkabinett, Germany
Art Living Osaka, arflex Osaka, Osaka
Kunst zum Jahreswechsel, Partout Kunstkabinett, Germany
Kameyama Triennale, Mie
Mie Prefecture Exhibition, Mie
Watowa Art Award, Watowa Gallery, Tokyo
Reading Nature, Galerie 21.06, Ravensburg, Germany
Chapter 3, Ken Fine Art, Osaka
Chapter 1, Ken Fine Art, Osaka
Art Connect, Spiral Garden, Yoshino Gypsum Art Foundation, Tokyo
durchdacht & intuitiv, Bergisch Gladbach, Germany
Von Zeit zu Zeit, Galerie 21.06, Ravensburg, Germany
Group Exhibition, im Denkraum, Siegburg, Germany
Goldene Zeiten, im Denkraum with Galerie Luzia Sassen, Siegburg, Germany
Förderpreis der Bodenseekreis Galerie 2018, Bodenseekreis Galerie, Meersburg, Germany
World Wide Art Show, New York
Blackbox, Galerie Luzia Sassen, Cologne, Germany
Im Wald, Atelier Alen, Munich, Germany
Winter Salon for Modern Art, Cologne, Germany
MK Steintor, Halle, Germany
Art X'mas Market, Atelier Alen, Munich, Germany
AAA – Atelier Alen's Annual Exhibition, Atelier Alen, Munich, Germany
Christmas Gallery Art, Flyer Art Gallery, Rome, Italy
Pittorico, Merlino Bottega d'Arte, Florence, Italy
Strictness and Grace, Merlino Bottega d'Arte, Florence, Italy
Spazio Aperto, Merlino Bottega d'Arte, Florence, Italy
Arte & Collezionismo 2016, Galleria d'Arte Mentana, Florence, Italy
In Balance, Flow Fine Art Gallery, Leverkusen, Germany
Den Schatten verlassen, Galerie Luzia Sassen, Cologne, Germany
Farben in großen Formaten, Magdeburg, Germany
Projections, Art van Demon in Delphi Berlin, Berlin, Germany
Artlokal Windeck, Galerie Luzia Sassen Windeck, Bonn, Germany
Linien Walten, Salus Institute, Magdeburg, Germany
Kontraste, Galerie Luzia Sassen Bonn, Bonn, Germany
Alle, Galerie Luzia Sassen, Cologne, Germany
Illusion in Art, Fellini Gallery, Berlin, Germany
Heise Kunstpreis, Dessau, Germany
Gedanken sind frei, Salus Institute, Magdeburg, Germany
Die Couch, Gallery Nord, Halle, Germany
Kirakira Japan Edge3, Paris, France
Nagoya City University Graduate Exhibition, Nagoya
What I am now +, Nagoya
100 People's Postcard Exhibition, Nagoya
ART FAIRS
Contemporary Art Ruhr, with Partout Kunstkabinett, Essen, Germany
Contemporary Art Ruhr, with Partout Kunstkabinett, Essen, Germany
Art Karlsruhe 2019, with Galerie Luzia Sassen, Karlsruhe, Germany
Art Karlsruhe 2018, with Galerie Luzia Sassen, Karlsruhe, Germany
Artmuc May 2018, Munich, Germany
Artmuc Nov. 2018, Munich, Germany
Affordable Art Fair Amsterdam, with Galerie Luzia Sassen, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Contemporary Art Ruhr, with Partout Kunstkabinett, Essen, Germany
London Art Fair, London, UK
Kölner Liste, Cologne, Germany
Artmuc May 2017, Munich, Germany
Artmuc Oct. 2017, Munich, Germany
Affordable Art Fair Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
Kunstmesse Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
Contemporary Art Ruhr, with Partout Kunstkabinett, Essen, Germany
Art.Fair, Cologne, Germany
Art pu:l, Pulheim, Germany
Art Affordable Brüssel, with Galerie Luzia Sassen, Brussels, Belgium
Art Karlsruhe 2016, with Galerie Luzia Sassen, Karlsruhe, Germany
Art Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
Artmuc, Munich, Germany
Art Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
Art pu:l, Pulheim, Germany
AWARDS & GRANTS
Project Grant, Okada Cultural Foundation, Mie
Project Grant, Nomura Foundation, Tokyo
Finalist, miratap Art Award / Art in the House 2025, Grand Front, Osaka
Longlisted, Aesthetica Art Prize 2025, York, UK
Excellence Award (2nd place), Mie Prefecture Culture Center, Mie
Project Grant, Okada Cultural Foundation, Mie
Nominated, Watowa Art Award, Watowa Gallery, Tokyo
Grant "Neu Start Kultur", Stiftung Kunstfonds (with Partout Kunstkabinett), Bonn, Germany
Grant, Yoshino Gypsum Art Foundation
Nominated, Förderpreis der Bodenseekreis Galerie 2018, Bodenseekreis Galerie, Meersburg, Germany
Project Grant, Freundes- und Förderkreis der Burg Giebichenstein University of Art Halle, Halle, Germany
1st Prize, Painting Department, Kunst Heute Award, Munich, Germany
Nominated, Heise Kunstpreis, Dessau, Germany
Graduate-Works Prize, Nagoya City University
Prize, Nagoya City Convention Photography Contest, Nagoya
PUBLICATIONS
International Kunst Heute, Munich, Germany
International Contemporary Artist vol. X, I.C.A., New York