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In Fuco Ueda’s artwork, the boundary between dreams and reality is so blurred that it seems pointless to differentiate the two. Girls plunge into the water and rest their heads on beds of anemones; they embrace deer whose antlers are pierced by slabs of meat; and they have keyholes in their temples. This surrealism has grounded Ueda’s practice for decades, but, even with her diverse range of fantastical subjects, she always seems to return to one in particular: the sea.
The ocean pervades even the artist’s earliest pieces, showcasing just how much she enjoys mining the theme for inspiration. In Spring Rain, from 2010, a woman barely holds her head above water, her wet hair plastered onto her face as she gazes at us with tired eyes. Tree branches peppered with white flowers frame the upper portion of the canvas, their rigid geometry juxtaposing the fluidity of the sea below. At first, it comes across as a despairing composition, in which a woman resigns herself to being submerged. But, upon closer inspection, Spring Rain reflects Ueda’s flexible attitude toward nature, where humans and the organic world around them can—and should—be one.
Piece of Spring, also from 2010, continues the narrative presented in Spring Rain. Here, the woman from the previous painting has finally tossed herself into the water, above which the same branches hang. Again, the scene may strike us as haunting, but the woman appears to be at peace as she sinks. Yellow birds—none of which are aquatic—also perch on the woman’s legs, imbuing the painting with a dreamlike quality. Perhaps, Ueda implies, this figure isn’t actually drowning in water. Perhaps she’s actually dreaming, sinking deeper into sleep.
Even Ueda’s newer works incorporate elements of the ocean. One piece from 2021, for instance, depicts a girl standing amidst crashing waves with a pair of antlers wrapped around her neck. Another features several goldfish entranced by diamonds splashing into the turquoise water around them. Fish and other marine creatures are common occurrences in Ueda’s art, and they always add to the surrealist atmosphere the artist so carefully crafts. Her hazy color palettes and glowing, almost translucent canvases only enhance that sensation.
Explore more of Fuco Ueda’s art on her website and by following her on Instagram.
Japanese artist Fuco Ueda creates hazy, translucent paintings reminiscent of daydreams.
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Many of her pieces incorporate water and other organic forms, proposing a stronger unity between humanity and nature.
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Her style is incredibly surreal, transporting us into strange and unfamiliar worlds that still feel welcoming and fantastical.
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Fuco Ueda: Website | Instagram
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