Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho's works may appear simple at first glance, but upon closer inspection, their depth gradually unfolds. Like a dried squid that becomes more flavorful the longer it is chewed, there are new discoveries each time you look, and your dialogue with the works becomes deeper. He shines a light on the anxieties and emotions that we in the modern world tend to overlook, and enables the complicated feelings and emotions of daily life to rise to the surface.

 

His works are made of transformed canvases that incorporate the trompe l'oeil technique. From a distance they appear three-dimensional, but when you approach you realize that they are 2D. This visual trick is not just a special effect, but it represents Ho's uncertainty about his own identity as well as our sense of loneliness and insecurity. In addition, he uses various fonts to depict phrases taken from social media and internet memes to skillfully express a range of emotions and tones. In his work "SLOW MORNINGS," the various fonts evoke the voices of multiple people, and he leverages the function of the letters to create visual rhythm and depth. When looking at the exhibition space as a whole, the canvases appear as if they are in dialogue with one another.

 

This exhibition features a “mushroom” motif, which is also familiar to viewers as a video game character. Ho's mushrooms, which are his response to Japanese culture, appear almost human-like when they are deformed, and they convey to us a sense of playfulness and a deep message. Through the mushrooms, Ho expresses the ambiguity, insecurity, and instability of the modern world. All of his works are hand-painted, thus imparting the warmth of handwork in the digital age, and the slight fluctuations of the brushstrokes convey a human touch to the viewers.

 

The exhibition title, "my dad always told me that at the end of the day is night," seems at first to indicate a poetic and deep meaning, but it ultimately concludes with the simple reality that "night will come.” The title contains humor, irony, and a soft punch line, and it fully expresses the sensibilities that run through Ho's works as a whole. This simple conclusion is obvious at first glance, but it leaves the viewer with a slight sense of emptiness and absurdity, thus giving room for deeper contemplation.

 

While influenced by conceptual artists such as Lawrence Weiner and Jenny Holzer, Ho has developed his own distinctively intimate and poetic style. A single viewing might be inadequate to fully grasp the ideas behind the works, but by returning to them multiple times, the hidden emotions and messages gradually come to light. Please take your time to thoroughly confront his works and appreciate their depth.

 

Curation: Maru Arai (ARTalk founder)