Japanese artist Yoshitomo Nara has brought his paintings of adorable yet angry childlike characters to London. An exhibition at Stephen Friedman Gallery coincides with one of Nara’s largest commissions being shown outside on the South Bank.The Friedman exhibition, titled “New Works,” runs through June 1, displaying paintings and drawings alongside what the artist calls “billboard paintings,” larger works painted on patched cotton and mounted on wood. In addition, one of Nara’s works has been made into a real-life billboard, hanging outside the Hayward Gallery by Waterloo Bridge on the city’s Southbank.In a news release, Nara explained that “I originally called the paintings on wood panel ‘billboard paintings’ due to their catchy and iconic imagery and the use of flat planes of color that is reminiscent of the style often used on billboards.”The Waterloo Bridge work, “Marching on the Butterbur Leaf,” executed this year, fits this description, with one of Nara’s signature icons standing in front of a single-color on a leaf drumming, “playfully encouraging passers-by to fall in step,” according to the Southbank Centre website.However, as Nara goes on to explain, in the exhibition itself his ideas for the billboards have progressed; “although the “billboard paintings” in this show are still evocative of this style, these ones which are rendered on patchwork cotton are much more painterly, with many layers of color.” This results in works like “Miss Margaret,” 2016, where the signature Nara figure with their wide-set eyes and strange haircut become less cartoonish, adding to the already slightly sinister air of his work. “Yoshitomo Nara: New Works” runs through June 1 at Stephen Friedman Gallery. “Marching on the Butterbur Leaf” is on display through June 30 outside the Hayward Gallery.
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