There was a moment upon entering Aya Takano's new exhibition at Perrotin New York, Unio Mystica, all by myself early on in the evening on Saturday, March 9, that gave me the sensation of floating. Eight large oil canvases generously spread out, a clay sculpture, skateboard deck and drawing installation completed the installation, and it felt gloriously open. That contrasted with what was happening in the works, mini-fairy tales and detailed works that, although had a feeling of solitariness to them, worked well inside the large gallery space.
Aya Takano, one of the Murakami's Kaikai Kiki artists who has seen international success as a painter and illustrator, but has also been adept at creatng mystical narratives in her career. These works combine sexuality, sprituality and urbanity, and as the large oil paintings become almost like movie cel depictions of movement through a 21st century spirtual connection within the city, the drawings become a bit more quiet and almost erotic.
As the gallery notes: The eight oil paintings presented in UNIO MYSTICA illustrate girls and animals freely interacting in spiritual union. The fantastical landscapes in which they are placed--near the ocean, in front of shops, in a restaurant, and in a metropolis--add an aspect of the otherworldly while also showcasing something familiar. Even though Takano depicts the sexual embrace between these girls and many marvelous creatures, it is only a device to convey the ability of living beings to intermingle with various kinds of energy manifest in the universe. “It may be that the heroic takes the form of a lion,” notes Aya Takano, “in the mythological world, there are no distinctions between humans and animals.” While the life forces that the girls encounter are powerful, the paintings reveal a sense of tenderness; the tigers, for instance, do not scratch, and all beings have harmonious expressions of contentment and ease.
The exhibition will be on view at Perrotin NY through April 13, 2019.
