untitled
2009
112 x 194 cm
acrylic on canvas

Yasuhide Kunimoto has been exclusively depicting groups of people. The reason he has mainly worked on the image of the young lads in a swimming
suit is just because swimming has been close to his life and he was familiar with the throng of people of the same generation. As he has been
doing painting, he has found figures or forms of people taking part in sports quite interesting. He did not take an interest in the beauty or
healthy-looking appearance which sports could possibly provide us with, yet what attracted him most was that participating in sports occasionally
forces us to assume unnatural and somehow intriguing position.The uncommon or in a sense this bizarre form seem as if being in the exact movement
at the word of command when in a cluster, however, each one of them in fact exposes tiny distinction. Yasuhide Kunimoto sets himself to depict such
variation not in the difference of facial expression but in the outline of each form. He intends to silhouette figures so he does not need to find t
he pretext for the facial expression. Each one in the cluster seems to talk about themselves in covert. Looking at his painting, one cannot help
noticing that each figure even when being with others in the group talks about self in peace. One then feels as if hearing still small voice out of
nowhere. In recent years, Yasuhide Kunimoto has been expanding the subject for his works. It does not necessarily have something to do with sports,
but it can be intriguing aspect of human body. Casting back our mind to our childhood, we were trained to line up all together in the schoolyard and
treated so as not to exert our individuality. However, his works certainly remind us of the small voice of individual, which makes out each existence.
This is his first solo exhibition at Base Gallery, giving the Tokyo public the first chance to view the great number of works at one venue.
We would like to invite you to join us at Base Gallery. An opening reception will be held at 18:00 on November 11th.

Biography
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