“The past and present are also present”

by Jean Nagai

Artist’s statement:

These paintings are primarily influenced by the shapes and colors I see landscapes. I am also motivated by a spiritual connection to nature and the vastness of the universe. Of course I see nature in forests, in mountains, but I’m also moved by the sense of nature that is present in say, an ant colony thriving on the side of a road in Bangkok. Reflecting on the world this way has taught me that there is a relationship between scale and empathy. Problems don’t seem as large or immediate when we pause and appreciate that there are larger (and smaller) forces at work around us. It doesn’t mean that pain is not real, but there is some comfort in knowing that life will persist with or without us. The universe contains multitudes and so do each one of us. As I write this I’m remembering something that happened to me as a baby (my first memory actually)—but I’m also thinking of the painting I will make tomorrow, and that sometimes I somehow forget that my parents are still alive, and then that I need to call them and tell them I love them even if I think I have something better to do. I’m thinking that sometimes it’s easier to love a dog I just met than to love myself. All are equally important.

Artist’s bio:

Jean Nagai is an artist (b.1979 Seattle, WA) and has spent the last few years in New Mexico and California. He received a BA from The Evergreen State College in ’04 and his work has been shown mostly along the West coast.

By engaging in a meditative process by which the sum of many individual dots accumulate to form a larger synergic whole, Jean’s work both creates and explores a spiritual microcosm and macrocosm that shifts between the physical, digital and political landscape.