Toko Izumi​
Musashino Art University Graduate School
Musashino Art University Graduate School

Judge's comment
The lines that Kiriko Izumi draws are the spaces left between the colors she paints in. The painting appears to be layered with carved spaces. This echoes the theme of searching for something hidden deep within the world in front of one's eyes, creating a dense and tranquil worldview. This is an excellent work that shows the great potential of Japanese painting. I hope to see even more success in the future.
(Special Visiting Professor at Nagoya University of Arts/Yusaku Imamura)

Aoi Fujiwara
Nagoya University of Arts
Nagoya University of Arts

Techniques such as quoting effects and adopting characters are commonplace when using anime as a subject these days, but I commend him for the fact that he was able to achieve a painting with an overwhelming and dynamic scale while doing so. The irresistibly chaotic situation that has emerged here is no doubt a reflection of the social turmoil and natural environment that surrounds us today.
Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum, Tokyo Curatorial Group Head/Reiichi Noguchi)

Shoichi Okumura
Tama Art University Graduate School
Graduate School of Tama Art University

Judge's comment
Okumura, who studied Japanese painting and studied Chinese painting in Beijing, is an exquisite fusion of Chinese painting, Japanese painting, and modern graphics, and is composed of tropical flowers, green landscapes, and human bodies that appear to be floating. The works created give a sense of deep tradition as well as the atmosphere of modern Asia. I would like to pay attention to how this cosmos will develop.
(Special Visiting Professor at Nagoya University of Arts/Yusaku Imamura)

Shoichi Okumura's work, backed by his high technical ability, fuses traditional Chinese landscape paintings with modern themes without falling into easy methods. There is a dialogue between Chinese aesthetics and Japanese aesthetics, and forms that are influenced by reinterpretations of Western painting from the 19th century can also be seen. Thanks to Okumura's talent, they are regaining a new reality.
(Embassy of France/Institut Francais Tokyo)

Emiko Kozaki
Musashino Art University
Musashino Art University

Judge's comment
We evaluated the interestingness of the design, which uses a heavy material such as a large metal plate, but combines the texture of paper and the lightness of the image derived from printed materials. I hope that the concept will be further fleshed out from here.
(Yokohama Museum of Art of Art Chief Curator/Eriko Kimura)

Yukari Motoyama
Kyoto City University of Arts Graduate School
Graduate School of Kyoto City University of Arts

Judge's comment
In contemporary art, painting is in a predicament. This is because it seems out of touch with the contradictions of modern society. However, here comes the counterattack of autonomous painting. Yukari Motoyama's works brilliantly revive the potential of modernist painting. (Professor, Kyoto University of Art and Design/Shigeo Goto)

Hiro Kunikawa
Musashino Art University Graduate School
Graduate School of Musashino Art University

Judge's comment
At first glance, Hiroshi Kunikawa's works seem to be based on traditional subjects such as portraits and figure paintings, but he continues to experiment and confirm the depiction of the spaces in which people live. The main focus is neither the person nor the landscape. Seeing such a mysterious work reminds me a little of Morandi. The very thrilling screen that unfolds on the borderline is very attractive.
(Representative of Tomio Koyama Gallery/Tomio Koyama)

Yoko Tanaka
Kanazawa College of Art Graduate School
Graduate School of Kanazawa College of Art

Judge's comment
It goes without saying that the ceramic works are highly technical, but the intricately structured three-dimensional works create an intense worldview that is extremely attractive. I got the impression that the artist effortlessly transcends the boundaries between craft and pure art. We look forward to future developments.
(Director of Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum, Tokyo / Akiya Takahashi)

Akane Arai
Musashino Art University
Musashino Art University

Judge's comment
A gutter covered with an inorganic metal grid runs diagonally across the screen, and a girl is walking along it. A thicket of trees. blue table and chairs. Images that are supposed to be everyday things are floating in my mind, unrelated to each other. I was drawn to the quiet yet mysterious atmosphere of the space.
(Tama Art University President/Akira Tatehata)

Akane Yamada
Nagoya University of Arts Graduate School
Graduate School of Nagoya University of Arts

I thought that the attention to line, which is the basis of drawing, was beautifully expressed, and that the work evoked a certain kind of emotion in the viewer. I felt that it was similar in some ways to makeup, which expresses maximum effect with minimal effort.