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Kevin Yamashita
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2022, 8×10 in
watercolor and gouache
Sakura
2022, 11×14 in
Oil pastel
Amaterasu
Depiction of what Amaterasu, Japanese sun goddess, might look like to me. Visual representation of how I comprehended Japanese folk tales at a young age.
2023, 11×14 in
alcohol marker, colored pencil, collage
Enveloped
The Rafu Shimpo is a Japanese-English newspaper that has been in print in the Los Angeles area for over a century. The figure is enveloped by the newspaper, but she contrasts it and stands out, highlighting the individuality of people in a community.
2022, 14×11 in
Gouache and colored pencil
Obon
Depicts dancing at Japanese summer festival, an annual event that was prominent in my childhood and life as a whole.
Obon Process
Top left: digital rough sketch to outline colors and composition. Top & bottom right: process of layering in gouache from thin to opaque. Bottom left: final piece.
2023, 9×12 in
graphite pencil
Kimono
2023, 11×14 in
alcohol marker, poster paing, graphite, oil pastel
Sumi-e
Most explorative piece of my portfolio: using new materials like poster paint and oil pastel, spontaneity. Demonstrates how an individual’s heritage always remain, sometimes beneath the surface of a person; represented by traditional techniques of japanese ink painting (sumi-e).
Sumi-e Process
Top left: initial pencil sketches that I decided I liked enough to pursue as a full piece. Top middle: digital combination of photos and sketches to visualize concept. Bottom row: sketchbook spread of practicing drawing face in pen and gaining confidence in ink technique w/ new paint. Top right: final piece.
2022, 9×12 in
alcohol marker
Submerged
2023, 5.5×8.5 in
graphite and colored pencil
Sketch 01
2023, Procreate on iPad
Gazing
Silhouette gazes out of window at dramatic clouds and mythical dragon; illustration of how I feel looking at my own heritage at times, as if it’s a fantastical, far away concept, extremely disconnected from me.
2023, 9×12 in
graphite pencil
Buddhist Temple
Tonal value sketch of the Buddhist temple I have been attending for events throughout my life, like summer festivals, mochitsuki (pounding mochi), etc.
2023, Procreate on iPad
Mirror
Referenced photo a Chinese and Japanese American friend took of herself. Expresses what modern Asian American culture appears as.
2023, Procreate on iPad
Light Study 01
First of two studies painted with Procreate on iPad. Both were attempts to study how light interacts with complex figures; the top study includes light falls on the bed and human figure, the bottom study isolates the human face and its contours.
2023, Procreate on iPad
Light Study 02
Second of two studies painted with Procreate on iPad. Both were attempts to study how light interacts with complex figures; the top study includes light falls on the bed and human figure, the bottom study isolates the human face and its contours.
2022, 16×12 in
gouache, watercolor, and colored pencil
Identities
Referenced four photos of myself. Flower and patterns inspired by traditional Japanese textile patterns, wispy objects inspired by elements used in Chinese paintings of dragons. Sections of ripped paper reveal Japanese, Chinese, and American flags. Three background versions of me are individual aspects of my identity, center version of me represents an accumulation of all identities.