Mariko Kubo

Mariko Kubo | Mariko Kubo

2016 Graduated from Tama Art University, Faculty of Fine Arts, Department of Oil Painting

2016 Sato International Cultural Education Foundation 26th Scholarship Selection

2017 Exhibited at the 26th Scholarship Exhibition of the Sato International Cultural Education Foundation

2018 Graduated from Tama Art University Graduate School of Painting, Oil Painting Research Area

2018 Exhibited at the Tokyo Five Art University Union Graduation / Completion Exhibition

2018 Toeko Tatsuno Award

2020 Independent Tokyo 2020 Exhibit

2020 Independent Tokyo 2020 Yamamoto Sent-down Youth Award

2021 s + arts summer exhibition / s + arts (Tokyo) exhibition

Mariko Kubo draws a fictional creature based on her own settings. They are drawn through all things, but their nature comes from her upbringing.
Kubo was born into a so-called relocation family, and she spent her childhood traveling around the world. When she moved repeatedly and was in an unstable state without a strong sense of belonging in various fields such as rural areas, countries, and cultures, she began to see "her neighbor". "Neighbors" are always non-interfering with the real world and are in a mysterious world. However, it does exist, and it occasionally turns its gaze toward this side. Kubo is comforted by the existence of such a "neighbor" and becomes attached to her. And Kubo begins production with the aim of portraying that "neighbor" that certainly exists.
The "neighbors" appearing in Kubo's paintings are drawn with their facial parts and body missing. The details of the "neighbors" are omitted and blend in with the landscape. By obscuring the difference between the subject and the object and constructing it in a symbolic form that reinterprets the details, we are trying to approach the "neighbor" by using both abstract and concrete interpretations.
The "neighborhood world" drawn by Kubo is softer than faith. And the "neighbors" drawn to look back at Kubo himself occasionally look at us from the paintings.