BIGEI

Painted Photographic Works by Tenmei Kanō
From the 1960s to the Present

This exhibition presents a series of canvas works by acclaimed photographer Tenmei Kanō, combining photography and painting. Based on photographs taken across the globe from the 1960s to the present, these works have been digitally processed and painted over, resulting in bold, innovative art pieces. At the age of 76, Kanō embarks on a new artistic frontier with this body of work.

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On “The Pink Dog”

I’ve been a photographer for over 58 years. While photography has transitioned from analog to digital, I believe the human sensibility embedded in film is absent from digital. Digital photography, at its core, is merely a shallow record—overly precise, lacking soul. Yes, it’s part of the evolution of civilization, but preserving our humanity should be a given. This isn’t about classicalism; rather, it’s about not existing on the superficial level of ease, convenience, speed, and simplicity that digital promotes.

Still, we all live in this unreality we call the everyday. There’s an emptiness I see in how people live. The question is whether each individual maintains a sense of independence. Everyone should have the will to think for themselves. As Descartes said, “I think, therefore I am.” So—are you truly yourself? Do you challenge yourself each day? Most people are shackled by social positions and pass through time without knowing what it means to exist in a concrete sense.

While transforming photos into digital works for this exhibition, I found myself thinking, “This is kind of dull.” Then suddenly, the phrase Pink Dog struck me like a bolt from the blue. I don't know why. Maybe a memory pulse in my brain misfired. What followed was a series of awkward, experimental works where I attempted to turn photographs into paintings.

The moment a photo is digitized, it becomes its own world—a complete, if imperfect, artwork. So why add paint to it? Well, since the advent of photography, painters from Bacon to many others have used photographs in their process. As for me, I’ve always held confidence, courage, and pride in my photographic work.

I’m not concerned with whether something is a photograph or a painting. I don’t care about genres. Art doesn’t require a methodology. But as someone living in this age, I find a certain thrill in wandering through the labyrinth between photography and painting, in pursuing some unattainable truth of human folly.

Even now, I will continue to challenge the boundaries of photography. And perhaps, inspired by the Pink Dog that descended upon me, I will take a few more steps into the creation of a future yet unseen.

— September 2018
Tenmei Kanō