ITOMARISM: Kaleidoscope

Mari Ito

ITOMARISM: Kaleidoscope October 18 - December 1, 2018

Published by JanKossen Ltd www.jankossen.com 10th edition ©April 2018 All rights rerved Printed in USA

Mari Ito (Japan/Spain) first solo show in the United States.

Japanese artist Mari Ito (Tokyo, 1980), who has been living in Barcelona since 2006, studied traditional Japanese painting at Joshibi University of Art and Design in Tokyo. In conceptual terms, her oeuvre is based on animism, which finds its expression in long standing Japanese techniques.

Ito invites us to reflect on the origins of desire, on our most irrational and personal impulses. The Id or “das Es” (as Sigmund Freud would say) split off from the ego and the superego is the psychic —therefore the purest and most primitive— expression of our drives and aspirations.

Ito’s delicately formed creations come to life as they unfold into themselves, permanently striving to make their way towards awareness in their on-going search for the root of desire, whatever its nature.

Completely opposed forces that actually complement and react to one another are interpreted by Ito in the same way, for they have the same value and form a duality that exists in natural harmony.

Tokyo’s Zeit-Foto Salon gallery represents Ito in Japan, alongside other artists such as Nobuyoshi Araki, Yuki Onodera and Daido Moriyama, while in Spain she has been working with Tatiana Kourochkina Galeria d’Art since 2012.

Mari Ito Origin of Desire - Amor, 2017 Mixed media, watercolor, acrylic color, pencil 19.7 x 25.6 in

ABOUT MARI ITO Japanese artist Mari Ito (Tokyo, 1980), who has been living in Barcelona since 2006, studied traditional Japanese painting at Joshibi University of Art and Design in Tokyo. In conceptual terms, her oeuvre is based on animism, which finds its expression in long standing Japanese techniques.

Ito invites us to reflect on the origins of desire, on our most irrational and personal impulses. The Id or “das Es” (as Sigmund Freud would say) split off from the ego and the superego is the psychic —therefore the purest and most primitive— expression of our drives and aspirations.

Ito’s delicately formed creations come to life as they unfold into themselves, permanently striving to make their way towards awareness in their on-going search for the root of desire, whatever its nature. Completely opposed forces that actually complement and react to one another are interpreted by Ito in the same way, for they have the same value and form a duality that exists in natural harmony.

Tokyo’s Zeit-Foto Salon gallery represents Ito in Japan, alongside other artists such as Nobuyoshi Araki, Yuki Onodera and Daido Moriyama, while in Spain she has been working with Tatiana Kourochkina Galeria d’Art between 2012 - 2014.

Mari Ito Origin of Desire - Independencia, 2015 Natural pigments, Japanese paper, Chinese ink, polystyrene, clay 10 x 10 x 2.5 in

Mari Ito Funny, 2018 Wood panel, Japanese paper, pigment, sumi, nikawa glue 15 x 21.5 in

Mari Ito Happy Rhythm (Mirror 1), 2018 Painting on antique mirror 38 x 36.5 in

Mari Ito Happy Rhythm (Mirror 2), 2018 Painting on antique mirror 38 x 36.5 in

Mari Ito Origin of Desire - Happy, 2015 Natural pigments, Japanese paper, Chinese ink, polystyrene, clay 10 x 10 x 15 in

Mari Ito Origin of Desire - I Want to Drink a Beer, 2014 Natural pigments, Japanese paper, Chinese ink, polystyrene, clay 10 x 10 x 15 in

Mari Ito Origin of Desire - Independencia, 2015 Natural pigments, Japanese paper, Chinese ink, polystyrene, clay 10 x 10 x 15 in

Mari Ito Origin of Desire - I Want to Talk, 2016 Wood panel, Japanese paper, pigment, sumi, nikawa glue 12 x 8 in

Mari Ito Origin of Desire - Energy 2, 2018 Wood panel, Japanese paper, pigment, sumi, nikawa glue 8 x 8 in

Mari Ito Origin of Desire - Energy, 2018 Wood panel, Japanese paper, pigment, sumi, nikawa glue 8 x 8 in

Mari Ito Happy Rhythm #1, 2018 Wood panel, Japanese paper, pigment, sumi, nikawa glue 24 x 24 in

Mari Ito Happy Rhythm #2, 2018 Wood panel, Japanese paper, pigment, sumi, nikawa glue 16 x 16 in

Mari Ito Happy Rhythm #3, 2018 Wood panel, Japanese paper, pigment, sumi, nikawa glue 16 x 16 in

Mari Ito Happy Rhythm #4, 2018 Wood panel,Japanese paper,pigment,sumi,nikawa glue 9.5 x 13.8 in

Mari Ito Origen del deseo- invisible- sentido de ojos derecho y izquierdo, 2018 Wood panel,Japanese paper,pigment,sumi,nikawa glue 18 x 15 in

(Three separate pieces)

Mari Ito Liberty (diptych), 2018 Wood panel, Japanese paper, pigment, sumi, nikawa glue 80 x 59 in

Mari Ito Happy Rhythm #5, 2018 Wood panel, Japanese paper, pigment, sumi, nikawa glue 9.5 x 13.8 in

Mari Ito Rainbow Blue - the Origin of Desire, 2018 Wood panel, Japanese paper, pigment, sumi, nikawa glue 39 x 39 in

Mari Ito Rainbow Green - the Origin of Desire, 2018 Wood panel, Japanese paper, pigment, sumi, nikawa glue 39 x 39 in

Mari Ito Rainbow Yellow - the Origin of Desire, 2018 Wood panel, Japanese paper, pigment, sumi, nikawa glue 39 x 39 in

Mari Ito Rainbow Orange - the Origin of Desire, 2018 Wood panel, Japanese paper, pigment, sumi, nikawa glue 39 x 39 in

Mari Ito Rainbow Red - the Origin of Desire, 2018 Wood panel, Japanese paper, pigment, sumi, nikawa glue 39 x 39 in

Mari Ito Happy Rhythm - the Origin of Desire Wood panel, Japanese paper, pigment, sumi, nikawa glue 38 x 51 in

Mari Ito Untitled Flower I, 2018 Natural pigments on Japanese rice paper 7.9 x 7.9 in

Mari Ito Untitled Flower II, 2018 Natural pigments on Japanese rice paper 7.9 x 7.9 in

Mari Ito Design Pattern - I Want to Be Relaxed Slowly, 2016 Wood panel, Japanese paper, pigment, sumi, nikawa glue 20 x 20 in

Mari Ito Untitled II, 2015 Graphite on paper 19.5 x 27.5 in

Mari Ito The Origin of Desire – El Nacimiento de la Energía, 2015 Pigments, Nikawa glue, Sumi, Oguni paper 29 x 23.5 in

Mari Ito The Origin of Desire - Los Malos Deseos, 2014 Pigments, Nikawa glue, Sumi, Oguni paper 31.5 x 25.5 in

Mari Ito The Origin of Desire – El Nacimiento de la Alegría Pigments, Nikawa glue, Sumi, Oguni paper 18 x 15 in

Mari Ito The Origin of Desire “Alegría”, 2015 Pigments, Nikawa glue, Sumi, Oguni paper 16 x 12 in

About Us

JanKossen Contemporary, founded in 2009 by Dr Jasmin Kossenjans, is an international dealer of contemporary art representing artists working across disciplines. Its principal focus is the representation of an international group of contemporary artists whose diverse practices include painting, drawing, sculpture, video, large scale installation, and performance. Aside from its represented artists, the gallery collaborates directly on exhibitions and projects with other artists and guest curators. The gallery is committed to presenting its artists’ work in an international context and to firmly establishing their contributions to the cannon of art history. Gallery artists are in the collections of, and have been part of exhibitions at, many museums around the world. Their works have been widely published as artist monographs, in art journals, and among critical theory texts. The gallery operate in Basel, Switzerland, New York, NY; and will open a new exhibition space in Hong Kong in 2019.

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IMPRESSUM CONCEPT, EDITING, AND REALIZATION Jasmin Kossenjans DESIGN Quoc Ly PHOTOGRAPHY JanKossen Contemporary TEXT Yilin Yang No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form, or by no means, electronic, mechanical, photo-copying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission of the publisher.

Published by JanKossen Ltd www.jankossen.com 10th edition © February 2019 All rightsreserved Printed in USA