AI MORITA (GURIPOPO)

AI MORITA (GURIPOPO)

Animals are the main motif in my paintings.

Generally, a common image of animals is one of soft fur, cute mannerisms and expressions—
all-in-all adorable, happy creatures. But the reason I paint animals has little to do with these traits.

I focus on other perspectives: the carefree, almost defenseless way they carry themselves, the listless expressions,
the times when they appear to be staring at some far-off point in the distance, the spots of fur stained a different color
by dirt and dust. This is what I paint.

Animals are more than just adorable pets. There is a sense of realness to them, mundaneness, and even pain—
traits that humans, myself included, share. My goal is to portray this ordinary, mundane nature of animals in my work.

I’m fascinated by the moment-to-moment combination of daily activities—eat, sleep, walk—so commonplace they nearly
avoid mention, and the innumerable trivial influences on the complex tapestry of emotions.

It is not the contrived or prepared, but the real moments I want to portray in my work. The face right before a yawn,
the moment just before stepping out on a walk, the photo of someone who makes the effort to pick the perfect pose but
at the least perfect timing, when the camera flashes, closes their eyes.

It isn’t just the ordinariness of animals that I find fascinating, but also their color and the various types of fur they have.
Many animals are covered in a soft, fluffy of fur, often earth-toned in black, white, or brown. The simplicity is refreshingly
stylish. It’s fun to work with a limited color pallette, exploring all the different hues, tones, and color combinations therein.
Another challenge is creating the feel of fur—its natural, imperfect flow, and its colors’ changes over time.

I strive to portray a natural color palette, and a texture that you can almost smell.
Each painting has only one animal.
One of my goals is to work with the animal motif to depict as well as I can glimpses of the real and ordinary.

Much of the effort in creating these pieces is in trying to recreate the form and expression of the animal as well as the
atmosphere surrounding it. I approach the painting process with great care and respect for these elements.

The purpose of my paintings is not to capture an animal, its life and habitat, in one four-sided canvas, but rather depict
a simple, singular, ordinary moment out of its much broader and complex life.

1974  Born in Tokyo
1997  Graduated from Tokyo Zokei University

2009  COLORS (Daikanyama Hillside Forum, Tokyo Japan)
2010  Art Garden@Isetan (Isetan Department Store Art Gallery, Tokyo Japan)
2011  Illustrators (Daikanyama Hillside Forum, Tokyo Japan)
2012  COLORS (Daikanyama Hillside Forum, Tokyo Japan)
EMERGING ARTIST (Isetan Department Store Art Gallery, Tokyo Japan)

2013  Young Art Taipei (Sheraton Grande Hotel, Taipei Taiwan)
Kaohsiung Design Festival (The Pier-2 Art Center, Kaohsiung Taiwan)
Art Garden@Isetan (Isetan Department Store Art Gallery, Tokyo Japan)

2014  Cat Exhibition (Isetan Department Store Art Gallery, Tokyo Japan)
Young Art Taipei (Sheraton Grande Hotel, Taipei Taiwan)
Art Garden@Isetan (Isetan Department Store Art Gallery, Tokyo Japan)
Affordable Art Fair Singapore (F1 Pit Building, Singapore)
Giant Mango Selection (Wrong Gallery, Taipei Taiwan)

2015  Cat Exhibition (Isetan Department Store Art Gallery, Tokyo Japan)
Animal Fores (Karuizawa New Art Museum Shop, Karuizawa Japan)