Sediment of Flux

aaploit presents Sediment of Flux, a solo exhibition by Nanya Yuuki, on view from June 9 through June 25, 2023. Nanya studied Western painting at Nagoya University of the Arts. She creates work around the themes of shōjō ruten—the ceaseless cycle of life—and the light and dark, the rise and fall of emotion.

Shōjō ruten, according to the Kōjien dictionary, means "all things perpetually repeat life and death, ceaselessly changing." The idea that things are reborn and die endlessly, continuing to change forever, implies that even after death, life leaves some trace—and can also be understood as eternal transformation.

Individual emotions are shaped by cultural backgrounds, the values of their era. The speed of digital evolution and globalization flows fast enough to disorient one's sense of position. The pace of contemporary change seems to demand that even the expression of emotion be fast-forwarded.

What the artist undertakes is to capture the transformation of life that has been born and the traces it leaves. She approaches negative emotions positively, creating work that expresses—or anchors—the traces of life in flux, encompassing the dual sides of emotion, love and hatred alike.

Sediment of Flux: amorphous forms in blue and orange occupy most of the picture plane. Their organic shapes evoke eyeballs, pupils, or souls. Within this surface, an innocent smile appears—childlike—and from the area of the hair, the blue and orange that cover the entire surface emerge, linking the organic imagery across the canvas to the image of hair. In the upper right, a face appears with head tilted, forming a contrasting relationship with the smile.

"Flux" refers to shōjō ruten; "sediment" represents the traces of life. The word ori (sediment) also connects to ori (cage), evoking the confinement and suffocation of adolescence. The attributes one carries—woman, man, eldest daughter, eldest son—the gap between the labels attached to you and the behavior others consider appropriate can feel confining, like being inside a cage. Through devotion to making, she broke free. Yet the sediment as trace remains. Not to be forgotten, but to be accepted as part of one's own makeup, swallowed whole. The sublimation of emotion in its absolute value—perhaps this is what gives us the strength to live.

This exhibition presents new paintings and drawings by Nanya, including Sediment of Flux.

For inquiries regarding the exhibition and works, please contact info@aaploit.com.