Mayumi Yamae: Let There be Light

Mayumi Yamae: Let There be Light

Kouichi Fine Arts is pleased to present a selection of latest paintings(2023-2024) by Mayumi Yamae, featuring delicate portrayal of women through the depiction of exotic flowers, evoking both beauty and transience.
Mayumi Yamae’s painting has consistently represented women by borrowing the image of beautiful, scented, mysterious flowers, the soft wings of creatures that remind me of birds, and the fictitious collapse of tone. The petals, which are integrated with the bird’s wings and continue to spread infinitely endlessly, are reminiscent of those who see the skin and body of women. But it is the gray rip that covers the beautiful petals. The break symbolizes women as beautifully decaying flowers, as opposed to flowers and feathers. In fact, while the petals and wings are polished and smooth like pottery, it can be seen that the canvas is partially exposed. And it is only a part of the woman symbolized by Yamae that is drawn and recognized in the work. From a part of painting, you can see the figure of a woman Yamae originally wanted to draw beyond the canvas, imagining the petals that continue to spread in all directions, the collapse, and the bird wings like skin. A woman you can’t see but exists beyond the painting which you can see. The gorgeous and erotic yet beautiful décor of Yamae, which is delicate and fragile, is used on the book cover of Hitoshi Tsuji and Masako Togawa. Each work is a different woman. One woman also suggests that various aesthetics and breakdowns, in contrast, have a seesaw-like balance.
Let There be Light / 2024 / oil on canvas / 27.3 × 19 cm
Distant Thunder / 2024 / oil on cotton canvas / 27.3 × 45.5 cm
Portent / 2024 / oil on cotton canvas / 130.3 × 80.5 cm