Yukako Shibata: COLOUR SHADOW

About

Yukako Shibata has long explored the myriad possibilities of capturing fleeting colours through painting which takes sculptural form and in Colour Shadow at the Lightgallery, London, (2-20 July 2013) shows recent, glorious pieces on this theme. Shibata's work is imbued with a sense of clarity and purity. The viewer is invited to share the artist's enjoyment of simple forms and playful compositions of shapes, experiencing a feast of undulating rhythms and forms, as well as the complex interplay of light and the human perceptual system. The body of work forms a world inhabited by objects which occupy a space between the conscious and the subconscious. They refer to architectural forms and organisms found in nature and the constructed world but simultaneously possess a sense of the imaginary and inner-self. This is echoed in the artist's use of colour, where certain emotions are hinted at whilst leaving space for the viewer's independent interpretation. Shibata's works which are mainly made up of simple painted objects and shapes are at once meditative but there is also the sense that they allude to something more. Surfaces that seem to be simple expanses of colour are the result of many layers of paint built up over time, reminiscent of delicate layers of skin, which are treated by the artist with an almost maternal protectiveness. Shibata's bravado and maturity shine through with some pieces shown in this exhibition taking themselves less seriously having an almost witty edge. However, there is a dialogue with the idea of the decorative and functional objects - perhaps a space for the viewer's self-reflection. Born in Hokkaido, Japan, Yukako Shibata has lived and worked in London for over a decade. She received a master's degree in Painting at the Royal College of Art in 2005. She has exhibited widely in both solo and group exhibitions, including the Mall Galleries (2012); WW Gallery (2012); Royal College of Art (2011); Norman Foster Circle Hospital (2010-12); Eleven Spitalfields Gallery (2009); The Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation (2008) and Atrium Gallery (2006).