Artist in Focus: Kubota Fumikazu
We’re so thrilled to welcome a new body of work by Melbourne-based artist Kubota Fumikazu. This collection of minimalist artworks, titled As High as Blue Skies, As Deep as Blue Oceans, marks a fresh start to the artist’s practice, as he emerges from the past two years of lockdown to play with scale in a new pared-back, yet vibrant, approach to his subtly textured paintings.
Scroll below to see the work or read more in our conversation with Fumikazu on the Journal here!
Dates:
21 - 30 July, 2022
Location:
Online and in store, Wurundjeri, 311 Smith St, Fitzroy.
Kubota Fumikazu is a Japanese-born artist working from his studio in North Fitzroy. Inspired by the works of the Gutai movement, Fumikazu has combined its epic mark-making methods onto Italian linen with his own signature geometric practice, to reveal an in-depth exploration of the colour blue.
Featuring five different sized canvases with the same compositional ratio, the minimal colour palette gave Fumikazu the confidence to play with other elements such as scale for the first time, and explore texture through building multiple layers of paint.
A projection of how Fumikazu sees the world post-pandemic, he found pleasure in the simplicity of form and material. To him, using the single hue strongly evoked the feeling of diving into the ocean, or staring at the sky.
Fumikazu arrived in Melbourne from Japan in 2003 and never left. Falling in love with Melbourne’s architecture, he began exhibiting extremely detailed ink drawings across Melbourne’s Artist Run Initiative (ARI’s). When not creating art, you’ll find him performing as the frontman of local punk band, Krul.
We look forward to presenting Kubota Fumikazu as our latest Artist in Focus! You will find all the works below and proudly displayed in our showroom from 21 July.
