Tokyo-born painter Toru Kamei is known for painting what he calls “beautiful nightmares,” arresting oil scenes that balance nature and morbidity. He was last featured on HiFructose.com here, and since that piece, the artist has a breakthrough in the fashion world. The artist recently collaborated with Dior Homme on an exclusive collection, implementing his work into both accessories and ensembles. Belgian fashion designer Kris Van Assche reportedly came across the artist’s work when researching floral motifs.
“My paintings are figurative — that is to say, I start off by depicting real objects,” the artist said in a recent interview with Vice, on his recent work and that collaboration. “I don’t mean to abandon that entirely, but recently I’ve been gradually trying to distance myself from that figurative side of things. When you listen to music, it feels like the sound works its way into your soul. Sound is made of waves, right? Color and light are made of waves too, so I think they affect our spirits in the same way. When I paint something figurative, the people who see that painting get caught up on its meaning. That’s not a bad thing, but I want to try to make art that speaks directly to the senses on a more natural level, without being so restricted by ‘meaning.’”
See more of how his work has been applied to fashion below.
Australian artist