KANA KAWANISHI GALLERY is pleased to present “The N-Lemma Posed by Compromise,” a solo exhibition by Kazuto Imura starting March 23, 2024.

Imura is an artist who has consistently pursued the motif of “mirror” with exceptional depth since he started his career as an artist in 2021. By taking a multifaceted approach to all elements related to the mirror surface, from obsidian excavated from ruins in B.C. to contemporary optical equipment and materials from all over Japan, he continues to comprehensively question the various problems posed by the question “Who am I?”

In this exhibition, his first solo show at KANA KAWANISHI GALLERY, Imura will present his unique expression for the first time, which could be called something intermediate between glass, mirror, and photography. 

The word “dilemma,” as suggested by the prefix “di,” which stands for the number two, indicates the contradiction or difficulty one is forced to face when faced with two alternatives. In this exhibition, Imura uses the term “N-Lemma” coined by himself, to extract the myriad claims, facts, possibilities, options, and compromises that human society has held, to sublimate them into an exhibition.
 

“Only one knows one’s inner self, and only others can see one’s outer self. Mirror images and photographs are images of re-presentation of appearances, not themselves. In other words, there is no one who knows both the inside and the outside.” These are Imura’s own words, but when we look closer at the mirror, which has permeated our daily lives worldwide, we realize that it contains a very primitive question. 

Who am I? The dilemma is that only one can know one’s inner self, while one’s outer self can only be recognized by others. We cordially invite all to this exhibition, which will showcase Imura’s new expression confronting the complexity of contemporary society while delving into the motif of the “mirror,” which is said to have been a fundamental desire and extremely mysterious from ancient times in its own way.