Kenichi Yokono
An invited (and award-winning) participant for the last four years to Takashi Murakami's Gesai art fairs in Japan, Kenichi Yokono's work is only just starting to get attention in the U.S. art market. A standout installation at the recent Pulse art fair in New York, the obsessive detail of the Japanese artist's woodblocks depict fantastical manga-like urban landscapes, people, and collaged images. Like manga, his images share an apocalyptic eeriness—he calls his work "the horror of everyday life" and "horror pop"—and his restricted palette (he often only uses two colors, usually red and white) makes for arresting images. His U.S. gallery debut happens this summer in a group show that features the work of young artists from around the world called "Ultrasonic International I" at Mark Moore gallery in Los Angeles. The show opens with a reception 8 July 2006 and runs through 19 August 2006.