Akira Ikezoe’s Darkly Humorous Paintings Tackle Environmental Catastrophe
Akira Ikezoe's distinctive schematic artworks, showcased in both the Whitney Biennial and Greater New York, are instantly recognizable. Filled with imagery of frogs, robots, and bears navigating labor and industry flowcharts, his pieces employ dark humor to tackle themes such as environmental disaster, resource extraction, and the complexities of natural versus industrial cycles. During a studio visit with curator Sofia Thiệu D’Amico, Ikezoe revealed that his frustrations with parenting his three-year-old son inspired his 2022 series, Baby Recipes, where baby body parts are humorously depicted as ingredients in comic-style cooking guides. The newsletter also includes John Yau’s critique of Charles Seliger’s centennial exhibit at Hollis Taggart, a studio visit with Arghavan Khosravi, and a feature on photographer Cara Romero.
Key facts
- Akira Ikezoe’s paintings are in the Whitney Biennial and Greater New York.
- His work features frogs, robots, and bears in flowcharts of labor and industry.
- Curator Sofia Thiệu D’Amico interviewed Ikezoe in his studio.
- Topics discussed include environmental catastrophe, parenthood, and his childhood in Japan.
- The Baby Recipes series (2022) was inspired by frustrations raising his three-year-old son.
- John Yau reviewed Charles Seliger’s centennial exhibition at Hollis Taggart.
- Arghavan Khosravi’s studio practice combines Persian miniature traditions with paint, canvas, and wood.
- An archive feature highlights photographer Cara Romero’s non-realist Native portraiture.
Entities
Artists
- Akira Ikezoe
- Charles Seliger
- Arghavan Khosravi
- Cara Romero
- John Yau
Institutions
- Whitney Biennial
- Greater New York
- Hollis Taggart
- The Art of This Century
- Peggy Guggenheim
- Aljira
- Newark Museum of Art
- Michael Rosenfeld Gallery
- Ars Electronica
- VH AWARD
- Paul & Daisy Soros Foundation
- Ucross
- AICA International
Locations
- New York
- United States
- Newark
- Japan