SEIZAN Gallery New York is pleased to present Takashi Seto: Moments Of Arrival, the artist’s first solo exhibition in New York, on view from March 6 through May 3, 2025. Showcasing fifteen recent works on canvas, the exhibition highlights Seto’s mastery of Yuzen fabric dyeing and Shippaku metal leaf techniques — the traditional craft methods he revives and reinterprets. Through this intricate process, Seto explores cultural heritage, symbolism, and the passage of time, transforming ephemeral materials into meditative, multi-layered works.

 

Artist, craftsman, and researcher, Takashi Seto studies 18th-century Yuzen textbooks and revives forgotten techniques, expanding them into new artistic expressions. His labor-intensive process includes hand-drawn rice paste resist lines, applied with a cone-shaped tube onto translucent silk. This meticulous method produces intricate details and layered dye applications. The silk is then stretched over a silver-leaf-covered canvas, affixed with urushi—a natural lacquer—in the traditional Shippaku technique historically used for Buddha statues and fine dishware. As the silver surface oxidizes it transforms the artwork’s appearance, creating an evolving dialogue between material and time. Seto’s layered compositions result in tranquil yet complex surfaces that invite contemplation and visual engagement.

 

The centerpiece of the exhibition is the four-panel work Personality Poison (2023), Seto’s homage to Yuzen’s history and the artisans who have preserved its traditions. The work features Murasakitsuyukusa (Tradescantia), a flower historically used to extract blue ink for fabric outlines. Though synthetic alternatives exist, Seto insists on using the natural plant-based ink, sourced from a 90-year-old craftsman and the very last person still producing it. Ironically, the ink is ultimately washed away during the dyeing process. Alongside the ephemeral flower, Seto paints a vividly colored Poison Dart Frog. The creature is renown for its toxicity, which is not inherent but is a cumulative result of its diet over time. Seto playfully depicts the frog with five toes instead of four, subtly anthropomorphizing it and inviting deeper reflection on adaptation and identity.

 

A paired work, Ah/Un: Ah (2024) and Ah/Un: Un (2024), references the symbolic guardian statues found at Japanese temples and shrines. These figures traditionally represent the sounds “Ah” (the beginning) and “Un” (the end), encapsulating the cycle of existence. In Ah/Un: Ah, a gecko—its mouth forming the “Ah” shape—appears alongside a directional traffic sign pointing forward. In Ah/Un: Un, a five-toed frog echoes the “Un” shape, suggesting completion. By juxtaposing everyday urban symbols with traditional iconography, Seto questions the nature of rules, boundaries, and the constructed systems that shape human perception. “What does it mean to follow a rule? How do we move beyond it? What happens when we step outside human-made symbols? What does it mean to exist in the present moment?”

 

Through his fusion of historical craft and contemporary themes, Seto challenges conventions and honors tradition, while navigating a delicate balance between preservation and transformation.

 

This exhibition is presented as part of Asia Week New York 2025 (March 13 – 21, 2025) . A reception with the artist will be held Thursday, March 13, from 6–8 PM.

 

Takashi Seto (b. 1974, Saitama, Japan) studied conservation and fabric dyeing, earning his master’s degree from Tokyo University of the Arts. He was later certified as a Traditional Craftsman of Kumagaya Dye Method, Yuzen, and Komon by Saitama Prefecture. While working as both a craftsman and conservator, Seto reinterprets traditional techniques to create contemporary works on canvas. His work has been exhibited widely at institutions including the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum, Kyoto City KYOCERA Museum of Art, Toyama Prefectural Museum of Art and Design, FEI ART MUSEUM YOKOHAMA, and SEIZAN Gallery Tokyo and New York. His works are included in public collections, including the Bunka Gakuen Costume Museum.

 

For press inquiries and further information, please contact Sayaka Toyama (director@seizan-gallery.com).