The Secret Garden : Iwasaki Takuya

Mr. Iwasaki Takuya is a rising young oil painter in Japan. He is currently studying at Tokyo University of the Fine Arts. He won the Grand Prize at Nagai Art Gallery Open Exhibition 2020.

Since 2012 Nagai Art Gallery has been holding an open exhibition every other year to exhibit works by members of the general public. In 2020, 197  amateur and professional artists attended and 272 works were exhibited.

The title “The Secret Garden” may remind us of the novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett and the shared themes of rebirth through nature between the book and this painting are evident.

On first impression, the wonderful use of green leaps out of the work. The thick foliage, the marshy green swamp contrasted with the withered plants and dead branches, all details are carefully depicted with great skill. The full range of green from the leafy hues to the fetid swamp are used brilliantly.

The red in the centre provides a strong contrast to the green. It has an almost Christmas-like feel and represents the vital growing energy of life.

Yet there is an incongruity to finding this man in red deep within the forest. You cannot help feeling that something is wrong and the man is immersing himself in nature to revive himself.

This painting was created in 2020 at a time when the pandemic had taken hold and people around the world were feeling trapped and cut off. The artist’s message of the importance of reconnecting with nature was especially relevant at the time it was painted. The vertical black line on the left gives the feel of a frame from a film and creates the sense that you are peeking into one dramatic moment of a whole story. 

Magnificent!