Atelier Talk: July 2026 — “When the Surreal Becomes Usual and Broken Dreams Are Still Dreams”

My painting "Fireflies' Light Show" on the right wall at Hollis Taggart Gallery.

Happy July, everyone!

I hope you're doing well. I'm finally feeling healthy again, and I'm excited to be more productive. It makes such a difference because nothing feels more stressful to me than not being able to paint and make things.

Lately, however, I have been having dreams that feel very different from my usual ones—somewhere between reality and surrealism. I hope this is only temporary and that I can return to my usual vivid, almost hyper-realistic, and sometimes crazy dreams soon. Dreams are a big part of my inspiration and creative process, so they hold a special place in my work.

In this month's blog:

1. Exhibitions currently on view that I'd love for you to visit

2. Book of the month

3. Other inspirations from this month, plus upcoming events

4. New works in progress from my atelier

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Exhibitions on View & Opening Soon

I'm so grateful to be included in so many group exhibitions this month. Four of them are in the Chelsea area, making it easy to visit all of them in one day.

My latest window painting at Hollis Taggart Gallery.

GOCA Gallery – HIGH VISIBILITY
The opening reception is this Thursday, July 30, from 6–8 PM, and I'll be there throughout the evening. This will be my last exhibition opening for a little while, so if you're able to stop by, I'd love to say hello!

Hollis Taggart Gallery – Summer Highlight (through August 21)
Two of my larger nighttime window paintings are included in this exhibition.

Pictor Gallery – Unbearable Lightness (through August 15)
This exhibition features two of my smaller paintings that are not part of my window series.

Village One Art Gallery – Elsewhere (through August 29)
Three of my window paintings are on view in this exhibition.

Exhibition in Queens, NY

There's also a two-person exhibition, Through the Looking Glass, on view at SHOWROOM Gallery at Guerra Paints in Maspeth, New York. The exhibition features my fish tank painting series alongside the work of the talented artist Jeffrey Morabito. While it's a two-person exhibition, it also feels a bit like a small solo show for me, as I've been given a dedicated room to present my work.

Book of the month

ブラック・ジャック創作秘話〜手塚治虫の仕事場から〜

The Untold Story: How Tezuka created his "Black Jack"

I've been pretty busy these past few months, so for my July 2026 reading, I picked a relatively light comic that I had asked a friend to bring me from Japan a few months ago. It only took me a day to finish, but it was a wonderful read—just as I had expected.

If you're interested in getting a glimpse into the lives of artists, I think you'll enjoy this one as well.

Other inspirations from this month

When Timing Finds Me —

I always spend time seeking the right inspirations at the right moments for my creative work. Timing itself is an interesting thing—it almost feels like a living creature. You have your own timing, but the things you're drawn to have theirs as well, much like a movie screening that only happens at a specific moment.

This month was especially meaningful for those of us who admire Evangelion. Two films were screened in theaters across New York City for one day each: Neon Genesis Evangelion: Death & Rebirth and The End of Evangelion. While the original Neon Genesis Evangelion TV series by Hideaki Anno remains my most favorite, I had never experienced these theatrical versions on the big screen before.

I also realized that I had never gone to the movie theater on two consecutive nights. Experiencing something for the first time is always exciting. It felt like a small but memorable journey for me.

The exhibition Through the Looking Glass gave me the opportunity to revisit my fish tank painting series, which I had taken a short break from in order to focus on my window series. Seeing my work outside my atelier and in different exhibition spaces has also given me a fresh perspective.

When I create my work, I'm very precise and try to follow my vision as closely as possible. In a way, you could say I'm a bit of a control freak, always striving for a level of perfection that feels true to me. But exhibiting my work with curators and galleries is a completely different aspect of the artistic process, and an essential part of experiencing art in public.

I enjoy seeing how curators and galleries interpret my work and choose to present it within their spaces. Their installations often reveal new relationships between the paintings and their surroundings, and they're frequently full of surprises.

New Works in Progress from My Atelier

Lastly, I'm excited to share that I'm currently working on a new fish tank painting and plan to start another one soon. I'm also working on two window paintings, as well as a new painting that incorporates a real glass window. The coming months will be filled with creative time in my atelier.

One of the window paintings still exists only in my mind. It's based on an experience I had in Philadelphia that became a turning point in my artistic practice. It was the moment that inspired me to take a window off a building and begin making my window paintings. I look forward to sharing more about this work as it takes shape.

These days, Fuuko sleeps in the most strange way one leg left out. She is having her five years old birthday soon in late August.