Naohiko Kuriyaki | 《epica-after-KAIJYUhaChouchouNOmaeDeSTOP》

■ Curator's Note

"Painting is dead, but pictures cannot die." — Starting from this proposition, Naohiko Kuriyaki traces back to pre-pictorial methods that were universal before the Renaissance — icons, Yamato-e, cave paintings. By layering crayon, colored pencil, sign marker, tempera, and more, and interweaving the acts of "drawing" and "writing" within the picture plane, he summons the mark-making that predates institutional painting onto large-format paper.

"The monster stops before the butterfly." — This sentence inverts the logic of scale and power. A monster — symbol of violence and enormity — stands frozen before the ephemeral fragility of a butterfly. This motif, linked to 《epica-after-choucho》, discloses in direct narrative form the central paradox of the series: that weight must be accumulated in the pursuit of lightness. On large-format paper, the density of the surface reaches toward the butterfly's unattainable lightness, enshrining that very unattainability as the work's subject.

■ About the Artist

Naohiko Kuriyaki graduated from Kyushu University's Graduate School of Design (Department of Design Strategy) in 2014 and continues to create from his base in Fukuoka. Through a distinctive methodology of layering crayon, colored pencil, sign marker, tempera, and more, he produces large-format drawings in which the acts of drawing and writing intertwine and entangle.

In 2024, he received the Grand Prize at the 21st Century Art Borderless Exhibition (National Art Center, Tokyo). In 2023, he was selected for the New York Open Exhibition and SHIBUYA ART AWARD. In 2025, his works were featured on the international art e-commerce platform Singulart.

■ Condition & Specs

• Title: epica-after-KAIJYUhaChouchouNOmaeDeSTOP
• Year: 2026
• Medium: Crayon, colored pencil, sign marker, tempera on paper
• Size: 109.2 × 78.8 cm (W × H)
• Signature: Signed; unique work
• Condition: Excellent

■ Guarantee

This gallery is an authorized dealer under a direct representation agreement with the artist. Every work is accompanied by a gallery-issued Certificate of Authenticity, permanently guaranteeing its provenance and authenticity.

| Contact Us |