TOKUHIRO KAWAI Japan, b. 1971

Born in Tokyo in 1971, Tokuhiro Kawai is one of the most renowned artist of the contemporary Surrealist Asian movement. He earned a BFA in 1995 and an MFA in 1997, both from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music. Inspired by the themes of magic and fantasy, his works seem to ignore gravity and perspective, stimulating the observers’ imagination with bright and floating figures. Each of his paintings contains a universe of infinite details evoked through a sublime oil on can- vas technique that creates a unique story. Inspired by the Western Renaissance, Kawai’s art elaborates on legends and myths with a new and intriguing visual language that moves away from Japanese contemporary art while maintaining its roots in storytelling and traditional pictorial iconography. Since 1997, Kawai has held several solo exhibitions in Japan and a group exhibition, and he has been involved in numerous exhibitions at Art Fair Tokyo since 2008.