Maiko KITAGAWA

Press release Maiko Kitagawa 2026

OPENING: THURSDAY 26 MARCH, 6–9 PM IN THE PRESENCE OF THE ARTIST

Galerie Taménaga is pleased to present the first solo exhibition in Europe devoted to artist Maiko Kitagawa (b. 1983).
A Floral Prayer brings together nearly forty works produced over the last three years. Originally from Saitama, Kitagawa’s practice is deeply rooted in childhood memories of Western classics—from the tales of the Brothers Grimm and Charles Perrault to the illustrations of Francisco de Goya, Gustave Doré, Odilon Redon, and Ruth Chrisman Gannett.
Working exclusively with the dermatograph, a wax-based grease pencil, Kitagawa has developed a singular visual language where grey has no place and the line is no longer merely a mark, but an apparition.
In the manner of a novelist, Kitagawa narrates a fantastical realm where monochrome compositions set the stage for a bestiary of remarkable richness—a space where Japanese legends intertwine with the echoes of Western fairy tales.
These “wordless fables” emerge from the density of the black, imbued with a subtle, mischievous humor. The longer the eye lingers, the more a world of intricacies and presences is revealed: a fragile, wondrous, and infinitely vibrant universe.