ARTIST STATEMENT

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Kana Nakamura, born in Tokyo in 1995, is an artist who depicts worlds where small, dog-like creatures quietly dwell amid eerily rustling nature.

Living with ADHD, autism spectrum disorder, and bipolar disorder, and identifying as non-binary, Nakamura’s work is deeply rooted in the sensation of becoming “transparent” within society.

They recall two moments when they truly felt,

“I am here.”

One was during a sleepless period, while sketching a dandelion—feeling a calm sense of unity with the plant.

The other was on a ferry from Amami Ōshima, when they were engulfed by a violent storm—feeling their own outline emerge clearly in the wind’s embrace.

Since then, Nakamura has continued to paint as a way to reconnect “nature” and “the self as a living being.”

Observing roadside plants and greenery in the corners of the city, they remark, “Whether in Tokyo or on an island, when you look closely, it’s like a small jungle filled with strange chaos.”

The white, dog-like figure that occasionally appears in their work represents the artist themself, the memory of a childhood dog, and the essence of life itself.

It stands in the liminal space between the visible and the invisible, gently linking Nakamura and the world together.