MAKI
4-11-11 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku
Tokyo 150-0001 JAPAN
Tel: +81-3-6434-7705
E-mail: info@makigallery.com

Exhibitions

Shiori Tono

Installation view, artwork: Shiori Tono

MAKI Gallery is pleased to present Oita-based artist Shiori Tono’s solo exhibition Nandemonai at Tennoz, Tokyo.

Nandemonai—meaning “ordinary” or “trivial” in Japanese—features a collection of paintings based on photographs Tono took of fleeting, unassuming scenes from her immediate surroundings. A Christmas cake shared at her part-time job; potted plants quietly sitting unnoticed as time goes by; eucalyptus leaves glistening in the sunlight—none of these are dramatic subjects, yet it is their very subtlety that imbues them with a precious tenderness.

By meticulously painting the ephemeral vignettes she encounters, Tono creates a multitude of images that seem to shift and evolve alongside the flow of time, heightening our awareness of the here and now. Her works gently illuminate overlooked moments and carefully retrieve memories on the verge of fading into oblivion. We invite you to immerse yourself in them as you pause and contemplate the lingering vestiges of days gone by.
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Takuro Tamura

Whence? How? Whereto? #4, 2025, acrylic, wood, felt, and aluminum frame, 62.0 x 143.0 x 3.8 cm

MAKI Gallery is pleased to present Uncertain Romance, Japanese artist Takuro Tamura’s second solo exhibition with the gallery, at Tennoz, Tokyo. The show features a new body of work inspired by board games, specifically the Game of Life; Tamura makes dramatic alterations to its well-known motifs, transforming them into arresting, enigmatic metaphors for the complexities of human experience.

The artist takes the Game of Life’s iconic game pieces and expands their size and quantity to an absurd scale. The Nomadic Pegs are massive versions of the plastic pegs used in-game to represent individual people. The Flagment series comprises almost 200 stylized flag sculptures, each painted in a unique combination of colors. In Whence? How? Whereto?, the board game’s colorful winding tracks are jumbled into convoluted masses with no beginning or end in sight, with a roulette wheel that continues to spin for eternity. While the original Game of Life lays out predetermined paths with specific goals and achievements for the player, Tamura’s interpretation embodies how the real world, particularly our information-inundated society, is open to an infinite number of trajectories that can change at any moment.

The artist detaches familiar objects from their intended functions, even rendering them completely useless at times, as he challenges the viewer to shed their preconceived notions of the universe. Though his work boldly criticizes contemporary society—questioning its structures, norms, and assumptions—it also earnestly encourages us to find wonder and fascination in the unpredictability of our existence.
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Kaz Oshiro & Takuro Tamura

  • Nana FUNO, Aya ITO, Kaz OSHIRO, Takuro TAMURA, Aiko YUNO
  • 2025/03/15-2025/04/20
  • Maebashi Galleria Gallery 2, Maebashi

Installation view, artwork: Takuro Tamura

Tomio Koyama Gallery and MAKI Gallery are pleased to jointly present the group exhibition Nana FUNO, Aya ITO, Kaz OSHIRO, Takuro TAMURA, Aiko YUNO at Maebashi Galleria Gallery 2.

Nana Funo intricately and assertively develops her works by sublimating the experiences, sensations, and emotions of her own life into a new narrative world. She uses meticulous brushstrokes to develop rich textures that instill her paintings with a luster akin to ceramic or metallic surfaces, while also evoking the exquisite depth of embroidery or textiles.
Aya Ito’s paintings employ a maelstrom of dark, vibrant colors with a distinct luminosity reminiscent of neon. Time and space appear distorted within her remarkably composed backdrops, conjuring the peculiar sensation of peering into a languid and weightless realm.
Kaz Oshiro’s work investigates the core essence of art through the lens of various dichotomies like sculpture/painting, abstraction/figuration, and reality/illusion, all while referencing such artistic movements as Pop Art, Minimalism, and Abstract Expressionism.
Takuro Tamura takes cues from his everyday surroundings and frequently incorporates motifs related to transportation into his work. With his keen observational skills, technical mastery, and playful sense of humor, the artist recontextualizes quotidian objects and materials, stripping them of their original functions and imbuing them with new meaning.
Aiko Yuno’s practice is based on the emotional and experiential gap between childhood and adolescence, utilizing a diverse range of media including metal, resin, ceramics, and acrylic paint. The artist’s candid exploration of selfhood invites the viewer to project and reflect upon their own lives as they stand before her work.

The work of these five artists will come together to ignite a dynamic interplay of expressive modes, generating a synergistic effect that powerfully engages the viewer’s senses.
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