EXPO 2025 - JAPAN PAVILION - A Creator’s Vision - Artist Shingo Francis

Fleeting Colors in Transition and a Circle Symbolizing Circulation

I believe my decision to become a painter was greatly influenced by my parents and my early environment. My father is American, my mother is Japanese, and I lived in Japan until I was 12 before moving to the United States to live with my father. My father was an abstract painter, and my mother was a video artist. Many of their friends were also artists, and they would often gather at our home or in studios, passionately discussing their works and creative processes. Interestingly, my first interest in artistic expression wasn’t painting — it was words. While browsing my father’s bookshelf filled with poetry collections, I became inspired to write my own poems and essays. By the time I was about 15, I discovered William Blake, the English poet and painter, which encouraged me to start adding illustrations to my poetry. Whenever I returned to Japan, my mother would take me to galleries in Tokyo. I remember being amazed by the diverse range of artistic expression — intriguing objects, sound installations, and more — which opened my eyes to the fascinating and expansive world of art.

At university, I studied traditional techniques like croquis, but I soon realized that faithfully reproducing what I saw in front of me wasn’t my strength. Instead, I became more focused on expressing what I felt in my heart. One of the turning points in my life came when I studied abroad in Florence. During that time, I had the opportunity to interact with Joan Mitchell, a friend of my father and an abstract expressionist artist. Upon seeing my work, she immediately urged me to “invent your own way of painting.” Her words were a wake-up call — lines, colors, shapes, depth, techniques, and processes should all be uniquely mine; no one else could express what I wanted to create. That encounter made me seriously reflect on how to translate my inner visions into paintings. Through much exploration, I eventually arrived at the layering technique that I still use today. By building up layers, light, shadow, and depth emerge naturally, revealing a sense of presence. This approach reflects my fascination with the fleeting beauty of light within darkness, much like the world depicted in Junichiro Tanizaki’s In Praise of Shadows. It’s this delicate balance — the interplay of light and shadow — that continues to inspire my work.

I was deeply shocked when I heard a curator say they made all their curation decisions solely through social media, without ever seeing the actual artworks. To me, art is something you must experience with your own eyes — it’s only through that direct encounter that emotions are stirred and a dialogue with the work begins. Sharing space with an artwork and observing it firsthand carries profound meaning. Reflecting on this idea led me to create this series. In these paintings, the colors shift depending on the viewer’s position and the angle of the light, much like a butterfly’s wings or the iridescent patterns of a jewel beetle. The pigments, which include mica, reflect light in a way that alters the visual tone. One of the key themes of this series is the awareness of one’s own physical presence — an invitation to reconnect with the act of seeing through the senses.

When creating abstract paintings, I make a conscious effort to focus on my own awareness. Being fully present in the “here and now” is incredibly challenging, yet I find constant inspiration in Zen philosophy. One particularly memorable experience was a Zen training session I attended at Tōfuku-ji Temple in Kyoto when I was 17. For about ten days, we practiced meditation from early morning until night, sitting in zazen and focusing solely on our breathing. At first, I struggled to concentrate — my mind kept racing with thoughts and memories, like a mental carousel spinning endlessly. The frustration was intense, but by the fifth or sixth day, my chaotic thoughts gradually began to settle. Then, about a week in… it happened — just for a brief moment. Everything before me — the stones and trees in the garden, the monk sitting beside me, and even myself — seemed to merge into one. It was an indescribable sensation, as if I had transcended my physical senses. That fleeting moment of connection has stayed with me ever since.

Throughout my artistic journey, I’ve explored various themes, but it was around 2021 — when I moved to Kamakura — that the circle became a central motif in my work. I see the circle as the simplest yet most powerful symbol of cycles — the endless loop of life and death, the changing of seasons, and the flow of time itself. Kamakura has a remarkably slow pace of life, surrounded by rich nature. Compared to Los Angeles, where I used to live — a place with little sense of seasonal change — I now feel much more attuned to the rhythms of nature and the passage of time. The abundance of temples and shrines here has also been a source of inspiration for my work. On a side note, I recently learned about Ensō, a Zen painting by Sengai Gibon, a monk and artist from the Edo period. In his famous work ○△□, some interpret the circle as symbolizing “nature,” the square as “humanity,” and the triangle as “the universe.” I find that perspective fascinating — another beautiful reflection of interconnected cycles.

Born in Santa Monica, California in 1969, Shingo Francis is an artist based in Los Angeles and Kamakura. His work explores the expansiveness of space and spirituality in painting. Francis has participated in numerous solo and group exhibitions both in Japan and internationally, including at the DIC Kawamura Memorial DIC Museum of Art (2012), the Durst Organization (2013), the Sezon Museum of Modern Art (2018), the Martin Museum of Art (2019), Ginza Maison Hermès Le Forum (2023), and the Chigasaki City Museum of Art (2024). His works are held in collections such as the JPMorgan Chase Art Collection, Banco de España, the Frederick R. Weisman Foundation, the Mori Art Collection, the Sezon Museum of Modern Art, the Oketa Collection, the Tokyo American Club, the Ueshima Collection, and Tiffany & Co.

SHINGO FRANCIS Liminal Presence Exhibition Catalog

SHINGO FRANCIS: Liminal Presence Catalog Now Available

Shingo Fancis: Liminal Presence exhibition catalog is now available to view online on the occasion of his current solo show at the gallery. The hard-copy will be available in the coming weeks. 

Shingo Francis was born in Santa Monica, California in 1969. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Pitzer College in Claremont, and a Master of Arts degree from ArtCenter College of Design, in Pasadena. Francis’ work has been exhibited in Japan, United States, Germany, South Korea, and Switzerland. He has been the subject of museum shows at the Kawamura Memorial DIC Museum of Art, Sezon Museum of Modern Art, Ichihara Lakeside Museum, the Martin Museum of Art, and the Frederick R. Weisman Art Foundation. He recently completed a permanent installation in the foyer of the Hermès Foundation in Tokyo and received the Fumio Nanjo Award in Tokyo. He currently divides his time between Los Angeles and the ancient coastal town of Kamakura, Japan.

Eric Johnson’s Madame X exhibition catalog will be available for viewing in the upcoming week. Thank you and happy holidays from everyone at William Turner Gallery.

SHINGO FRANCIS + FONDATION D'ENTERPRISE HERMÉS TOKYO

Le Forum is an exhibition space housed in a glass-brick building designed by Renzo Piano. Flooded with natural light that forms an integral part of its identity, it is an oasis of contemplation inviting visitors to discover contemporary art in the heart of Tokyo’s dynamic Ginza neighbourhood. Directed by exhibition curator Reiko Setsuda, Le Forum offers an international programme bringing Japanese artists together with others from all over the world.

What is “interference”? Under this title, the first exhibition of 2023 invites the public to find answers through experience. Four artists explore our perceptions through the effects on the body of stimuli such as light, vibrations or soundwaves. Through stripped-back aesthetics, each of these artists highlights the subtle variations caused by the interferences to which our bodies are subjected in everyday life. Visitors are invited to contemplate the nature of perception through deeply felt sensations both physical and unconscious. The title, “Interference”, is borrowed from a series of paintings by artist Shingo Francis (b. 1969, United States): containing pigments that interfere with light, the colours of these canvases shift according to the viewer’s position. Nearby, an installation by Susanna Fritscher (b. 1960, Austria) immerses the viewer in a sensory experience of vibrations and pulsations beyond the frequencies that we are capable of hearing. Finally, Bruno Botella (b. 1976, France) presents pieces that stimulate our subconscious perception through tactile sensation, while Aiko Miyanaga (b. 1976, Japan) invites visitors to embark on a cosmic journey – the ultimate sensation, transcending time and space – through a tea ceremony shared online.