Rock You in a Tatami Room
Opening Reception: Saturday, March 12, 2024 7-11pm
Exhibition on view through April 2, 2024
San Francisco, CA-The Shooting Gallery is pleased to present, Rock You in a Tatami Room, a solo exhibition by Seattle-based Japanese artist, Yumiko Kayukawa. This new collection of works will continue the artist’s affinity for fusing pop culture iconography such as western fashion and rock and roll with varying aspects of traditional Japanese culture. The exhibition will be her seventh solo show at the Shooting Gallery and will be comprised of her signature acrylic and ink on canvas works. The opening reception of Rock You in a Tatami Room, will be held at the Shooting Gallery on March 12, 2024 from 7-11pm. The exhibition will be on view through April 2, 2024 and is free and open to the public.
Filled with conflicting realities of pop culture, traditional Japanese aesthetics and cultural traditions, Yumiko Kayukawa’s Rock You in a Tatami Room presents a varied collection of themes representing a confluence of personal narrative, whimsical imagination and contemporary life. The acrylic and ink-based works are explosions of dynamic color and surrealist narratives where empowered females navigate the intricacies of modern life. Kayukawa’s subjects are youthful Japanese heroines in contemporary settings often surrounded by an entourage of displaced wildlife such as bears, wolves, bunnies and deer. By coalescing polar binaries such as nature/urbanity and the primal/the refined, her work intertwines and extends the relationship of femininity, nature, and modernity.
The show’s eponymous painting, Rock You in a Tatami Room, exhibits Kayukawa’s trademark style, a collision of seemingly disparate elements: young girls, rock and roll, and wild animals. An amalgamation of cultural references such as the animist aspects of Shinto and Japanese folklore, the tones and pallet of Ukiyo-e, the defined lines of Manga, and the topical content of Anime. Nostalgia for Japanese culture is further explored in a piece entitled New World, where a girl stands at the ruins of a post-apocalyptic scene. Inspired by Japan’s suffering after World War II and its successful recovery from devastation, Kayukawa creates a symbolic message of hope–that the world will recover from the current worldwide economic devastation as Japan did when it successfully rebuilt the country’s economy and infrastructure in the post-World War II era.
Yumiko Kayukawa (b.1970) was born and raised in the small town of Naie on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido where she graduated from the Hokkaido College of Art and Design. Kayukawa moved to the United States over 10 years ago to pursue her life as an artist. She has since shown her work at Joshua Liner Gallery, New York City; La Luz De Jesus Gallery, Los Angeles; and M Modern Gallery, Palm Springs. Group exhibitions include: The Good, The Bad and The Beautiful (with Niagara), Richard Goodall Gallery, Manchester, England (2008); Tag of War, Hemphill Fine Arts, Washington, DC (2007); We’ll Make a Lover of You, Miami Art Center/Art Basel Miami Beach (2006); and Beast From The East (with Moira Hahn), Roq La Rue Gallery, Seattle (2005).
The Shooting Gallery opened it’s doors in 2024 to the edgy Tenderloin district of San Francisco; one known for it’s diverse culture and history. Owner and curator, Justin Giarla, founded the space to offer a welcoming environment for viewing the art he loves. Growing up in Southern California gave Justin an affinity with everything lowbrow: pop art, street art, outsider art, punk rock album art, comic book art, surf/skate art, erotic photography and hot rod culture. Giarla has long since recognized the necessity to provide lowbrow artists with a platform, which is exactly what The Shooting Gallery has done for the past seven years.
Media Opportunities
Interview with the artist, Yumiko Kayukawa
Interview with Justin Giarla, Owner/Founder of 941 Geary, White Walls, The Shooting
Gallery and G3
Calendar Editors
What: Rock You in a Tatami Room, exhibition by Yumiko Kayukawa
Where: The Shooting Gallery
835 Larkin St
San Francisco, CA 94109
When: Opening Reception: Saturday, March 12, 2024 7-11pm
Exhibition on view through April 2, 2024
