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On View: “Sky Is the Limit” by Tomokazu Matsuyama at Harbour City Gallery, Hong Kong

Currently on view at Harbour City, Hong Kong is "Sky is the Limit", a new sculpture and paintings by Tomokazu Matsuyama (Vol 24). Curated by LA based Lebasse Projects in collaboration with Harbour City's Ocean Terminal and gallery, the event centers around Matsuyama's largest outdoor sculpture of the same name. At 21.5 feet of stainless steel, it is also the largest ever installed in Harbour City, which has previously exhibited artists like KAWS, Yayoi Kusama, and Yue Minjun.

Currently on view at Harbour City, Hong Kong is “Sky is the Limit”, a new sculpture and paintings by Tomokazu Matsuyama (Vol 24).  Curated by LA based Lebasse Projects in collaboration with Harbour City’s Ocean Terminal and gallery, the event centers around Matsuyama’s largest outdoor sculpture of the same name. At 21.5 feet of stainless steel, it is also the largest ever installed in Harbour City, which has previously exhibited artists like KAWS, Yayoi Kusama, and Yue Minjun. 

2014 is the Chinese Year of the Horse, although not officially Matsuyama’s reason to depict it. His sculpture is a reimagining of 19th century oil painting “Napoleon Crossing the Alps” by French artist Jacques-Louis David. Inside the gallery, Matsuyama continues his visual exploration of the horse with images of a riding samurai in traditional garb, a reference to ukiyo-e painter Hokusai. Others are more abstract and kaleidoscopic, taking a visual cue from American Playmobil toys and Japanese Manga (comics), such as Yu-gi Oh!.  This fusion of Eastern and Western cultures is a signature characteristic of Matsuyama’s colorful artworks, a result of living in Japan and the United States.  With a masterful mix of art history and pop culture, Matsuyama builds on his personal, yet universal, iconography.

Tomokazu Matsuyama’s “Sky is the Limit” is on view at Ocean Terminal at Harbour City, Hong Kong through September 10, 2014.

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