Kohei Nawa Cosmic Sensibility Past Nov 22, 2023 – Jan 20, 2024 Seoul Exhibition Details:Kohei NawaCosmic SensibilityNov 22, 2023 – Jan 20, 2024Gallery:267 Itaewon-roYongsan-guSeoulPress:Press Release (ENG) Press Release (KOR)Connect: (opens in a new window) @nawa_kohei (opens in a new window) @pacegalleryAbove: Kohei Nawa, Spark#6 (detail), 2023 © Kohei Nawa Pace is pleased to present an exhibition of new works by Kohei Nawa at its Seoul gallery. On view from November 22, 2023 to January 20, 2024, the presentation, titled Cosmic Sensibility, marks the artist’s first solo show at Pace’s gallery in the Korean capital. Bringing together paintings and sculptures from five bodies of work—including the new Spark series—this exhibition will showcase Nawa’s deep and enduring interest in the perceptual, sensorial, and phenomenological possibilities of art.Nawa often examines scientific and digital subjects through his multidisciplinary practice. Making use of various traditional and unconventional materials—and drawing out their unique properties—for his work across painting, sculpture, and installation, the artist explores the nuanced relationships between physical and virtual spaces; synthetic and natural forces; and the individual and the collective. Visual distortions and transformations cut across Nawa’s works, encouraging viewers to consider the ways that digital technologies impact their relationship to and experience of the physical world.The five bodies of works the artist will show in his forthcoming exhibition speak to his longstanding interest in visual distortions and paradoxes. With Cosmic Sensibility, Nawa invites viewers to immerse in the wonders and mysteries of the vast universe. The exhibition's central concept—the ways that our individual lives are entwined in the fabric of the cosmos—pays homage to artist Hitoshi Nomura, who died in October 2023 and is known for his deeply experimental, process-based work. A teacher and mentor of Nawa, Nomura remains an enduring and profound influence on the artist’s work across mediums.Nawa’s show will begin on the ground floor of the gallery, where the visitors will encounter a new sculpture from his iconic PixCell series along with the mixed-media installation Biomatrix (W) (2023), which traces the generation and flow of cellular forms within a canvas of flowing silicone oil, and works from the artist’s Ether sculpture series, based on 3D modeling of a highly viscous liquid in various stages of descent. Exhibited in conversation with one another, these artworks reflect the abstract, textural qualities of individual and aggregated cells.On the gallery's second floor, the exhibition will transport viewers into a world of proliferating cells, spotlighting a group of new sculptures from the PixCell series. These sculptures feature transparent spheres, or cells, covering their surfaces. The cells transform and distort viewers' perceptions of the forms beneath—a visual phenomenon that speaks to the impact of digital technologies on individuals' relationships to the world around them. The new PixCell sculptures that Nawa will exhibit in Cosmic Sensibility feature strange combinations of antique furniture and other miscellaneous objects.While referencing the international history of Surrealism, these works also engage with issues of the present moment— particularly the ways that innovations in virtual reality and artificial intelligence blur the boundary between the physical and virtual worlds.Other highlights in the exhibition include bold, enigmatic sculptures from the artist's new, never-before-exhibited Spark series, which are finished entirely in solid black. With these works—each composed of velvet, and a carbon fiber rod— Nawa meditates on a rift in the fabric of reality caused by the energy of agitated cells. The presentation will also spotlight his Rhythm series, which features combinations of variously sized shapes covered in velvet and situated atop two- dimensional planes. Reflecting the aesthetic concerns of his PixCell sculptures, Nawa's mesmeric Rhythm works explore the cyclical, energetic complexities of the natural world. Read More FilmKohei Nawa's Cosmic SensibilityIn our new film, Kohei Nawa discusses the varied materials, structures, forms, and concepts across Cosmic Sensibility, on view at our gallery in Seoul through January 20, 2024, including the new works in his iconic PixCell series and his never-before-seen Spark sculptures. Featured Works Kohei Nawa, Rhythm#19 (Velvet), 2023, mixed media, 106 cm × 203 cm × 6.4 cm (41-3/4" × 79-15/16" × 2-1/2") Learn More Close modal Kohei Nawa Rhythm#19 (Velvet) 2023 mixed media 106 cm × 203 cm × 6.4 cm (41-3/4" × 79-15/16" × 2-1/2") Inquire How can we reach you? First Name* Last Name* Email* Phone Inquiry Message Have you purchased from Pace before?* Yes No Submit Inquiry Or go back Kohei Nawa, PixCell-Perfume Bottle/Medicine Bottle/Murex/Stand, 2023, mixed media, 141.5 cm × 39.3 cm × 39.6 cm (55-11/16" × 15-1/2" × 15-9/16") Learn More Close modal Kohei Nawa PixCell-Perfume Bottle/Medicine Bottle/Murex/Stand 2023 mixed media 141.5 cm × 39.3 cm × 39.6 cm (55-11/16" × 15-1/2" × 15-9/16") Inquire How can we reach you? First Name* Last Name* Email* Phone Inquiry Message Have you purchased from Pace before?* Yes No Submit Inquiry Or go back Kohei Nawa, PixCell-Owl/Cushion/Trivet/Table, 2023, mixed media, 128.1 cm × 49.8 cm × 50.1 cm (50-7/16" × 19-5/8" × 19-3/4") Learn More Close modal Kohei Nawa PixCell-Owl/Cushion/Trivet/Table 2023 mixed media 128.1 cm × 49.8 cm × 50.1 cm (50-7/16" × 19-5/8" × 19-3/4") Inquire How can we reach you? First Name* Last Name* Email* Phone Inquiry Message Have you purchased from Pace before?* Yes No Submit Inquiry Or go back Kohei Nawa, Biomatrix (W), 2023, mixed media, dimensions variable Learn More Close modal View Previous View Next Carousel slide 0 Carousel slide 1 Kohei Nawa Biomatrix (W) 2023 mixed media dimensions variable Inquire How can we reach you? First Name* Last Name* Email* Phone Inquiry Message Have you purchased from Pace before?* Yes No Submit Inquiry Or go back Kohei Nawa, Ether#96 (T), 2023, mixed media, 165.3 cm × 25.8 cm × 25.8 cm (65-1/16" × 10-3/16" × 10-3/16") Learn More Close modal Kohei Nawa Ether#96 (T) 2023 mixed media 165.3 cm × 25.8 cm × 25.8 cm (65-1/16" × 10-3/16" × 10-3/16") Inquire How can we reach you? First Name* Last Name* Email* Phone Inquiry Message Have you purchased from Pace before?* Yes No Submit Inquiry Or go back Kohei Nawa, Spark#1, 2023, carbon fiber rod, nylon, velvet, 252.1 cm × 290.4 cm × 158.6 cm (8' 3-1/4" × 9' 6-5/16" × 62-7/16") Learn More Close modal View Previous View Next Carousel slide 0 Carousel slide 1 Carousel slide 2 Carousel slide 3 Carousel slide 4 Kohei Nawa Spark#1 2023 carbon fiber rod, nylon, velvet 252.1 cm × 290.4 cm × 158.6 cm (8' 3-1/4" × 9' 6-5/16" × 62-7/16") Inquire How can we reach you? First Name* Last Name* Email* Phone Inquiry Message Have you purchased from Pace before?* Yes No Submit Inquiry Or go back Kohei Nawa, PixCell-Coyote#8 (Aurora), 2023, mixed media, 73.3 cm × 92.6 cm × 24.8 cm (28-7/8" × 36-7/16" × 9-3/4") Learn More Close modal Kohei Nawa PixCell-Coyote#8 (Aurora) 2023 mixed media 73.3 cm × 92.6 cm × 24.8 cm (28-7/8" × 36-7/16" × 9-3/4") Inquire How can we reach you? First Name* Last Name* Email* Phone Inquiry Message Have you purchased from Pace before?* Yes No Submit Inquiry Or go back Installation Images 1/8 2/8 3/8 4/8 5/8 6/8 7/8 8/8 Carousel slide 0 Carousel slide 1 Carousel slide 2 Carousel slide 3 Carousel slide 4 Carousel slide 5 Carousel slide 6 Carousel slide 7 About the ArtistKohei Nawa is a multidisciplinary sculptor whose diverse practice explores the perception of virtual and physical space and probes the borders between nature and artificiality. His work spans painting, drawing, sculpture, and installation, as well as various facets of design and collaborative projects through his Kyoto-based studio, Sandwich.Learn More Journal View All Films Kohei Nawa's Cosmic Sensibility Dec 08, 2023 Pace Publishing Kohei Nawa: Aether Sep 27, 2022 Museum Exhibitions Contemporary Asian Artists at Virginia's Hermitage Jun 04, 2019 Artist Projects Lee Ufan & Kohei Nawa in Setouchi Triennale Apr 17, 2019 Overview Exhibition Film Featured Works Installation Images About the Artist Journal