Year: 2015
Medium: oil, gold leaf on canvas
Dimensions: 137 x 178 cm (54 x 70 in.)
Acquired from Echigo-Tsumari Art Field, 2022
A large golden tree stands in a forest of deep green. The blue surface of the water is visible towards the bottom, perhaps the edge of a spring. It is a sentimental scene that evokes an imagined memory as if they had seen such a place somewhere. The grain on the surface of the tree’s bark has been densely worked with fine lines, but depending on the angle of light on the gold leaf, the superimposed lines can take on the appearance of areas of either relative highlight or shadow. The treatment of light and shade is always an important feature in Oiwa’s work. Oiwa also paints from a viewpoint of greater elevation than the human eye. In particular, his large works are characterized by a broad field of vision, as if looking out over the world from the distant sky, and are often described as taking a bird’s-eye view. This piece, too, is depicted from a rather high vantage point, as if looking down from the treetops. An elevated point of view, beyond that physically possible for the human body, can mean a variety of things in painting; here, by clearly indicating a viewpoint that preserves a certain distance from the object to be depicted, the artist seems to suggest that the focus of this gaze is a realm inaccessible to humans. The sight of particles of light dancing in the sky like fireflies frequently appears in Oiwa’s work, and this work also features many floating lights, enhancing the sacrality of the great shining tree. The painting has an illusory quality, but Oiwa himself appears focused on the real world and the problems of our human society, which we imagine lurking just behind this scene. Oiwa’s works are often qualified as fable-like because of how the viewer is drawn into scenes that overflow with unreal forms of expression, such as the inhumanly high viewpoints and the treatment of light. Borrowing this perspective simply allows us to recognize reality, as understood by Oiwa, in the form of a fantastic tale. The work was exhibited at “Collections of Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale 2022,” an exhibition held at Yukihisa Isobe Memorial Echigo-Tsumari Kiyotsu Soko Museum of Art (Niigata) as part of the eponymous festival.
