Tokyo, Japan – waitingroom is pleased to announce a solo exhibition by Yuichi HIRAKO “The Leaf Scar” through July 6th, Sat. to August 11th, Sun. 2013. He has been showing internationally these days and it is the only solo exhibition by him in Japan in 2013. In this exhibition, HIRAKO is showcasing 20 new paintings, 10 new sculptures and several drawings in the theme of “coexistence” between human and nature and question coming from their relationship.

Yuichi HIRAKO is born in Okayama in 1982, currently living and working in Tokyo. He graduated from Wimbledon College of Art (England), Fine Art, Painting Major in 2006. In addition to Japan, he has been showing internationally in Copenhagen, Singapore, Taiwan, San Francisco and others. Recent exhibitions include a solo exhibition “SLEEPING IN THE PINE FOREST” (2012, Galleri Christoffer Egelund, Copenhagen), solo exhibition “Memories of My Garden : Hidden Forest” (2012, INAX Gallery, Tokyo), solo exhibition “The Wooden Clapper” (2012, The Drawing Room, Manila). HIRAKO has been receiving many awards for the past couple of years, including “Shell Art Award 2009” (Finalist Nominated), “Tokyo Wonder Wall 2010” (Tokyo Wonder Wall Prize), and most recently “VOCA (Vision of Contemporary Art) 2013” (The VOCA Encouragement Prize).

HIRAKO primarily discusses the relationship between human and nature in his work. Especially in a big city like Tokyo, people live with house plants inside of apartment, there are many gardens and public parks that is the nature artificially created by man. He questions himself that the relation between human and nature is becoming obscure in the city and it became a trigger for him to make his work. Moving the nature to the city, they often die down because they are not fit in the environment. Also, using a great amount of money to let the nature alive in the city, it seems like it is the human ego and shows its tight mental state. Through his work, he questions what is essentially the NATURE and also what is the “coexistence” of human and nature, and attempts to let the viewers rethink about it.

The title of the exhibition, Leaf Scar, is the biological word which means the evidence of the leaf. After the leaf falling off from the stem in winter, there is a signature left on its surface and it is called the Leaf Scar. This is the evidence that the plant life certainly existed there and each Leaf Scar is different depending on the type of plants, showing its individual character.

In a big city like Tokyo, it is difficult for the plants to survive, but HIRAKO attempts to depict the evidence and memory of the plants in his work. Through his work, he would like the viewer to synchronize each of their memory with the plants and rethink about what is the relation between us and nature.