Sho Kishino’s art works represent a release of spirit and modest, spiritual philosophy from beginning to end. Kishino uses old timber found from Japanese temples and shrines he discovers in the mountains and in riverbeds. He communes with the spirit that resides within the wood then abandons self to produce these sculptures. His works embody a feeling of 'emptiness' and can be described as a fusion of Giacometti and Zen Buddhism.
Brief Biography
1972 Born in Kyoto. His father, Tadataka Kishino, is a painter of the Suiboku-ga (Ink wash painting) tradition.
1991 Studied Japanese painting under Hajime Fukui
1996 Graduated from Aichi University of the Arts
Solo Exhibitions
2013 Ippodo Gallery, New York
2014 Sculptural Objects Functional Art (SOFA), Chicago
Shibunkaku, Ginza, Tokyo
2015 Collect: International Art Fair for Modern Craft and Design
Ippodo Gallery, Ginza, Tokyo
2016 Takashimaya Department Store, Osaka
Takashimaya Department Store, Nihonbashi, Tokyo
2018 Takashimaya Department Store, Osaka
Shibunkaku, Ginza, Tokyo
2019 Takashimaya Department Store, Nihonbashi, Tokyo
Group Exhibitions
2012 Exhibition with his brother Kan Kishino; Takashimaya Department Store, Yokohama
2014 Exhibition with his brother Kan Kishino; Takashimaya Department Store, Yokohama
2017 Exhibition with his brother Kan Kishino; Takashimaya Department Store, Yokohama
2019 Exhibition with his brother Kan Kishino; Takashimaya Department Store, Kyoto
2020 Exhibition with his brother Kan Kishino; Matsuzakaya Department Store, Nagoya
Prominent Collections
2018 International University of Health and Welfare, Tokyo Akasaka Campus
2020 Oriental Museum at Durham University, United Kingdom
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Kogei: The Art of Japanese craft
Summer Selections from Ippodo Gallery, New York 5 - 27 Aug 2021The Japanese festival of Obon ( お盆) traces back to ancient Chinese and Buddhist rituals that honor one’s ancestors. It is believe that this time every year, the ancestor’s spirits...Read more -
Samsara 輪廻:
Sculptures by Sho Kishino 10 Sep - 8 Oct 2020The sound of footsteps, the rounded shoulders of a priest, the crowing of a gamecock, a mother’s gentle smile…these works possess not only sorrow, but also humor. Light and shadow...Read more -
A Lotus in Bloom
The Beauty That Rises 10 Jun - 10 Jul 2020Lotus: Beauty that Rises from the Mud Growing out of muddy water, the lotus produces flowers that represent purity and clarity, resulting its use as a symbol of Buddha’s wisdom....Read more -
Sculpting ‘Emptiness’
Wood sculptures by Sho Kishino 12 Sep - 3 Oct 2013An Artist Who Sculpts ‘Emptiness’ Shoko Aono Shō Kishino’s sculptures depict the ‘emptiness’ that envelops them. Although they may take the form of a human figure, an animal or a...Read more
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TEFAF Maastricht 2026
14 - 19 Mar 2026FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Authentic Colors of Japan MAASTRICHT, NETHERLANDS – Ippodo Gallery is pleased to announce its debut participation in TEFAF Maastricht 2026, presenting a landmark exhibition titled Authentic Colors of Japan at Booth 476. From March 14 to March 19, the exhibition will feature masterful objects by 20 of Japan’s most distinguished contemporary artists. Their creations evoke vivid pigments sourced from nature and explore the primal power of color through the nation’s rarest traditional materials. This showcase of authentic Japanese colors offers visitors an encounter with a spectrum of mediums: the deep reds of vermillion lacquer, the luminescence of Gofun white from oyster shells, the brilliance of gold and silver leaf, and the depth of indigo blue. The exhibition highlights how ancient techniques are being radically recontextualized for global contemporary audiences: cutting edge mother-of-pearl inlays are naturally luminescent like digital screens; revolutionary silk Obi belts woven with opal incorporate the thousand-year history of Japanese weaving with new understanding of minerals; and masterworks in bamboo, Nihonga painting, and clay are grounded in the earthy, tactile aesthetics of the Japanese landscape. "To witness these artworks is to see the 'colors' of Japan not as mere pigments, but as living history," says Shoko Aono, the director of Ippodo Gallery. "In presenting pieces by these 20 esteemed artists in Maastricht, we are showcasing a mastery that is at once ancient and avant-garde." Exhibiting artists: Shin Fujihira, Shihoko Fukumoto, Kondaya Genbey, Yuki Hayama, Hideaki Honma, Terumasa Ikeda, Manji Inoue, Hajime and Yasuo Ishikura, Hiromi Itabashi, Yukiya Izumita, KAKU, Sho Kishino, Hirotomi Maeda, Masaaki Miyasako, Jihei Murase, Daisuke Nakano, Junko Narita, Reiji Omori, Hiraku Sudo, Shion Tabata, and Sōyō and Shōdo Yamagishi.Read more -
Conversations from Home Vol.6
Sho Kishino x Jennifer Navva Milliken 17 Sep 2020Featuring: Sho Kishino, Sculptor Navaa Milliken, Director, The Artistic Director for The Center for Art in Wood Click recorded videoRead more
