SOM GALLERY is delighted to announce "Root / Shoot”, a solo exhibition by Miyuki Inagaki on view from November 13 to December 1. This is Inagaki's first solo exhibition at SOM GALLERY. This exhibition will feature Inagaki's colorful oil paintings as well as ceramic works, which she began making last year.

Inagaki, under the question, "what the world that spreads out in front of me looks like,?", continuously raises inquiries about the place where we live and the scenery that extends beyond it. By periodically observing familiar living environments such as homes and gardens, and the modest ecosystems nurtured by nature and animals, she captures the memories and various sensations embedded within these subjects and locations. Through the act of painting, she persistently explores and questions these themes.

Inagaki begins with an attempt to imagine and reinterpret multiple perspectives, whether those of herself, other beings, or others in general for making her works. The landscapes where various viewpoints gently intersect are composed of intricate brush touch and bold strokes, using geometric patterns while excluding figurative image, showcasing a diverse range of approaches. Additionally, there are works that incorporate elements of otherness, such as pieces where wooden panels are vertically attached to the canvas, or works where parts of the canvas are cut away, creating distorted forms. This is derived from Inagaki's viewpoint that the artwork and exhibition space is a “garden” as she defines it. In a "garden," which has its own unique ecosystem, the environment undergoes subtle yet continuous changes over time. Inagaki carefully reflects on and absorbs this temporal progression, engraving it within each of her works.

The fluid and multi-perspective works complement each other, creating an exhibition space that transforms the white-cube into a unique "garden." Through the "garden" created by Inagaki, viewers will likely imagine memories, sensations, and changes that are beyond human perception, while reflecting on the existence and scenes that we often overlook and let slip away in our daily lives.

 The exhibition titles "Root" and "Shoot" are derived from the terminology used to describe the structure of plants. Plants, which grow primarily using light and soil nutrients, form diverse ways of life by repeatedly dividing at their apex, causing immature buds to elongate. As new shoots and roots are continuously added, the number and arrangement of these units change day by day .For me, the act of painting is a process of deconstructing and re-questioning the inherent meaning and form of things, serving as a means to reach out to unseen landscapes. Can a "garden" exist without separation, embracing multiple forms of life and death, both visible and invisible, all together as one?

2024.11 Miyuki Inagaki

Miyuki Inagaki was born in Kanagawa Prefecture. After completing her doctor's degree in Oil Painting at Tokyo University of the Arts in 2021, she mainly makes her works and exhibits in Tokyo.
Major solo exhibitions include ”黑冠與水坑” at Pon Ding (Taipei, 2024), ”Whorls and Quadrangles” at CLEAR GALLERY TOKYO (Tokyo, 2024), ”me wo akeru” at KATSUYA SUSUKI GALLERY (Tokyo, 2023).Major group exhibitions include “Ama ＆１３Artworks” at the Toba Sea Folk Museum (Mie, 2023), “KAMEYAMA TRIENNALE 2022” at cultural properties Tachi house (Mie, 2022), “Passport to Shangri-La” at The Museum of Modern Art Saitama (Saitama, 2022), “Para-Landscape  Imagination to Face the Changing Reality” at Mie Prefectural Museum (Mie, 2019).