New York-based artist Naoto Hattori, first featured in HF Vol. 7 and most recently, HF Vol. 35, creates dreamy paintings that are snap shots from his visionary world. It is there in the private recesses of his consciousness where his subjects thrive, he says. Opening July 18th, Hattori’s next exhibition at Copro Gallery in Los Angeles titled “Genesis” delves even deeper into the artist’s mind – where we dare to think about our creation and place in the universe. For his previous showing, “REM”, covered here, we saw Hattori using more earthy tones and geometric detailing in his surrealistc portraits. He continues this treatment in new acrylic on wood paintings, as in his rendering of skin that has the translucence of soft tissue, but with chiseled wood carving-like patterns. His patterns have also been described as “henna-like,” graphical designs that counteract the realism in each piece. This is because Hattori’s subjects are not intended as real people but representations of his own stream of thought, memories, and eternity personified. He embodies these themes as child-like deities and womanly goddesses, with the blissful spirit of someone looking up at the stars for the first time. Take a look at our preview of “Genesis” below, courtesy of the artist.
Cuban artist Alan Manuel Gonzalez once found it inconceivable to be showing his art outside of Cuba. He has described his paintings as the result of the inescapable circumstance of being created there. Today, censorship in Cuba is the most intense in the western hemisphere. Gonzalez relies on the use of metaphor and surrealism to express both his love for his country and disdain for its problems.
Portland based artist 
Numbers of women artists still rank low in gallery rosters, less than 50 percent, across the world. With the exception of a few like Yayoi Kusama and Yoko Ono, women in the Japanese contemporary art world have yet to earn equal recognition. This is largely due to the historical conception that women were not suited to become professional artists. A new exhibition at Jiro Miura Gallery in Tokyo is bringing awareness to 19 emerging international women artists. "Ephemeral: Territory of Girls", which opened on July 25th, showcases new works by Jana Brike, Amy Crehore, Virginia Mori, Ania Tomicka, Emi Adachi, Fuco Ueda, Kaori Ogawa, Miki Kato, Kimi Kuruhara, Kozue Kuroki, Satomi Kuwahara, Atsuko Goto, Yuka Sakuma, Minae Takada, Tsubaki Torii, Yumi Nakai, Yuko Nagami, Yuki Nagayoshi, Mao Hamaguchi, Miho Hirano, Shiori Matsumoto, Eri Mizuno, and Yuko Murai.