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On View: “Love, Strength, and Soul” by Tim Okamura at Yeelen Gallery

"I think my aesthetic is kind of a mash-up: realism, graffiti, stencil art, and some moves inspired at times by abstract expressionism," shares Tim Okamura on his latest solo, "Love Strength and Soul". Now on view at Yeelen Gallery in Miami, his show is an exploration of the figure over the past 5 years. Previously featured here, Okamura's New York city women are a mix of traditional portraiture upgraded by personal symbolism and experiences.

“I think my aesthetic is kind of a mash-up: realism, graffiti, stencil art, and some moves inspired at times by abstract expressionism,” shares Tim Okamura on his latest solo, “Love Strength and Soul”. Now on view at Yeelen Gallery in Miami, his show is an exploration of the figure over the past 5 years. Previously featured here, Okamura’s New York city women are a mix of traditional portraiture upgraded by personal symbolism and experiences.


“Seeds of Contemplation” by Tim Okamura

By pairing new paintings side by side with older pieces on display, Okamura was able to assess his development. “I often like to think of my mindset to making paintings as sharing something in common with a hip-hop DJ; sampling classic grooves, finding something familiar, but putting a new beat over top, giving it a different feel, perhaps more urgent, and perhaps also like an MC, delivering a new message over top of that old school jam…” Okamura carries this idea of experimentation in music into his creative process of painting. For example, “Seeds of Contemplation” is inspired by a Robert Rauschenberg painting, given a new spin with a subdued palette and pattern. He adds, “The key for me is to keep things fresh through these explorations, and to keep looking ahead to the next body of work.”

“Love, Strength, and Soul”, work by Tim Okamura is on view at Yeelen gallery through January 10th, 2015.

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