NEW YORK.- A series of acrylic paintings and drawings by Japanese artist Mahomi Kunikata will be on display at the Tilton Gallery from November 20 - December 22. Kunikata, an artist with Kaikai Kiki LLC, the artist-led art enterprise founded by Takashi Murakami, will be showing her graphic and colorful manga-inspired work for the first time in New York. A reception will be held Tuesday, November 20th from 6 PM to 8 PM.

Kunikata’s works employ the same narrative qualities of manga, or Japanese comics, though with a pathos that is entirely her own. She has adapted the conventions of the genre to tell stories more personal and emotionally demanding than those found in the typical work. Her style reflects this motivation, eschewing a more precise graphic line that is both raw and powerful. At first her scenes, like those found in manga, seem instantly familiar and engaging, but an enigmatic melancholy permeates each one.

A self-described otaku (a Japanese term specific to fans of anime and manga, roughly equivalent to the English “geek”), Kunikata’s work is infused with the tenets and aesthetic of the subculture, referencing an often sexually-explicit manga subgenre known as yaoi. Addressing issues of abandonment, masochism, and depression, each painting contains a character facing a struggle, often surreal in nature, but human in its suffering. The plot lines of these stories are deeply complex, each is linked to a detailed narrative.

At the opening Kunikata will be engaging in “cosplay”, a Japanese term derived from a portmanteau of the English words "costume" and "play." Cosplay is a popular Japanese subculture in which individuals costume themselves as characters from manga, anime, or video games. In Kunikata’s case, she will dress as one of her own characters, a Japanese demon named “Kuromo” which is a cross between a plant and an animal. This character is a significant part of her work, appearing repeatedly in past pieces and pieces for this show. Another major character from her work, “Katsuzo”, a high-school student, with twin sisters, will also appear in cosplay at the opening. .

Discovered at Kaikai Kiki’s GEISAI, an art fair where young artists without gallery representation present their work, Kunikata( Born 1976, Kanagawa ) has shown her work in several group exhibitions internationally, including Little Boy at Japan Society in New York and J’en Rêve at the Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain in Paris.