Installation view, KAKU: Spiral Rhythm
KAKU: Spiral Rhythm
Closing Saturday, February 28, 2026
35 N Moore Street, NYC
Don’t miss the opportunity to experience the first solo exhibition of acclaimed Japanese artist KAKU before it closes on February 28 at Ippodo Gallery.
With more than a dozen works of paper and three-dimensional wall sculptures, composed from tens of thousands of hand-wrapped washi paper spirals, KAKU meditates on the significance of washi paper as an integral element in Japanese culture, particularly as it evokes qualities of warmth, innocence, and quiet in everyday life. The essence of washi offers a material intelligence that refreshes the soul.
Central to his unique technique is the meticulous hand-wrapping of each spiral, working from the core outward: washi paper is coiled repeatedly around special wires. KAKU arranges the individual paper coils into expansive compositions where each component becomes inextricable from the whole. To create these spirals is a form of meditation, an invitation to join in a collective serenity. There is a simple and profound meaning to the natural white character of washi and organic forms which recall leaves, shells, and other biological formations. It is a visual language shared by Ippodo Gallery: references to nature which transcend cultural and aesthetic boundaries.
As described by director Shoko Aono, “In the natural, untouched, white hue of the paper—its inherent innocence, tenderness, and warmth—he sought to recover his soul’s tranquility, patiently creating countless pieces of spiral forms one by one with his own two hands. When these pieces were gathered together, the Spiral Series was born. Sometimes, KAKU casts vibrant paint upon his white spirals, coating them with color, and this eruption is truly an expression of exultation from a heart that has found its freedom.”
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