PAST TIME PARADISE

This exhibition introduces Paul Kato, a fictional character whose paintings are being showcased. Throughout his life, Kato developed a deep obsession with postcards. Initially, he painted landscapes inspired by the idyllic resort destinations depicted on postcards. However, at a certain point, he became increasingly interested in the discrepancies between the idealized images evoked by postcards and the reality of the locations they represent.

The timeless, beautiful imagery captured on postcards contrasts sharply with the fleeting, unrecordable beauty of experiences during visits to actual resort destinations. Which is more beautiful—the imagined paradise crafted by media imagery or the reality of the paradise itself?

Reflecting on these questions, Kato began incorporating repetitive, layered effects into the motifs depicted on postcards, attempting to immortalize their idealized imagery through his paintings. This exhibition features these works.

Kato Takaaki
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Takaaki Kato / 加藤崇亮

Born in Tokyo in 1985, Kato spent his childhood in Düsseldorf, Germany. He graduated from Azabu High School and Tama Art University with a degree in design from the Faculty of Art and Design.

In 2012, he joined the art collective Enlightenment and later became independent in 2020 after participating in Chikabi. Kato creates cinematic paintings exploring themes of time, projection, and memory.

Solo Exhibitions
2021 Bathroom Forest (Mitsukoshi Nihombashi Art Salon)
2022 Montage (Feb Gallery)
2023 FRUIT OF MEMORY (Kameido Art Center)
2024 Something to Shine in the Toilet. (Laforet Harajuku B1 Toilet Gallery)
2024 First Glow (Chignitta)
2024 SWIM DOWN (SHARE LOUNGE, Daikanyama T-SITE)

Group Exhibitions
2012–2018 Here is ZINE (TOKYO CULTUART by BEAMS) – Participated in editions 8–16
2016–2020 HILLS ZINE MARKET (Roppongi Hills Art and Design Store)
2017 Participated in UNKNOWN ASIA
2018 House and Pineapple (Visiontrack Private Gallery)
2020 WAVE 2020 (3331 Arts Chiyoda)
2020 Independent Tokyo 2020
2021 WAVE 2021 (3331 Arts Chiyoda)
2022 WAVE 2022 (3331 Arts Chiyoda) and Satellite Exhibition (Daikanyama T-SITE)
2021 Motion Surface
2021 NEWoMan Yokohama Window Display
2021 Stretched Tree (H.P.FRANCE Bijoux Marunouchi Window Display)
2022 MITSUKOSHI Art Weeks (Mitsukoshi Nihombashi)
2024 WAVE 2023-24 (Lurf Museum)
2024 LUMINE 2024 SUMMER Window Display
2024 HILLS ART & ZINE MARKET (Roppongi Hills A/D Gallery)
2024 WHAT CAFE EXHIBITION Vol.37 (WHAT CAFE)

Art Fairs
2022 tagboat Art Fair 2022 (Hamamatsucho-kan, Tokyo Metropolitan Industrial Trade Center)
2023 tagboat Art Fair 2023 (Hamamatsucho-kan, Tokyo Metropolitan Industrial Trade Center)
2023 LUMINE ART FAIR (NEWoMan Shinjuku)
2023 Study: Art & Creative Fair (Participated via THE blank gallery)
2024 SWAB Contemporary Art Fair Barcelona
2024 ART021 Shanghai
2024 LUMINE ART FAIR 2024 (NEWoMan Shinjuku)
2024 TOKYO ART BOOK FAIR 2024 (Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo)

Awards
2012 Selected for Here is ZINE 8
2017 Received the Fumiko Chatani Prize at UNKNOWN ASIA Art Exchange Osaka
2020 Special Jury Award and Toshiyuki Sakai Prize at Independent Tokyo 2020