Masamitsu Shigeta

Situations is pleased to present Under the Surface, an exhibition of new paintings by Masamitsu Shigeta. Known for his paintings of urban landscapes in unique, artist-made frames, Shigeta's latest works foreground wood-carving as a technique for contouring and building the image itself. Carving into the surface of wood panels, Shigeta hones in quiet details that reveal patterning and poetry within still-lives of potted plants and cityscapes. Mottled sunlight, the outline of a tree, or a grid of skyscraper windows is defined through woodwork before paint is applied in layers. Scratching away at the surface introduces contrasting colors and textures while further defining pictorial elements.

Known for his paintings of urban landscapes presented in unique, artist-made frames, Shigeta has long incorporated sculptural elements into his work. With these new paintings, that physicality moves beyond the frame and into the image itself. The panel becomes an active part of the composition, with Shigeta cutting into, painting, and working back across the surface to build the image.

In some works, Shigeta extends elements of the image beyond the panel and into physical space. In Asparagus, a painted depiction of the plant is accompanied by a construction of wood and drumsticks that mimics the form of the plant's spears. The resulting work takes on a surreal quality, blurring the distinction between the painted image and the physical world it depicts.

Masamitsu Shigeta (b. 1992, Tokyo, Japan) lives and works between Hoboken, NJ and Tokyo, Japan. He holds an MFA from New York University and a BFA from the School of Visual Arts. He has held solo exhibitions with Situations, New York; Tyler Park Presents, Los Angeles; Parcel, Tokyo; Gallery 1226, Dallas; Gaa Gallery, Cologne, and The Shophouse, Hong Kong. He has been in group exhibitions at Cob Gallery, London; Hive Center for Contemporary Art, Shanghai; and Lipscomb University, Nashville. His work is held in the collections of The Bunker, Palm Beach, and the Dallas Art Museum in Texas.