Introduction to Naoki Nakao

Naoki Nakao (b.1986, Shimane) is a highly regarded contemporary Japanese realist artist, known for his masterful figure painting and distinctive visual language. While completing his MFA at Musashino Art University, he received the Studio Award in recognition of his strong technical foundation, marking a key starting point in his artistic career.

His work has been exhibited and awarded in major exhibitions, including the Alton Award at the Hakujitsukai Exhibition in 2012 and recognition at the Maeda Kanji Grand Prize Exhibition in 2014. Working fluidly with oil, tempera, and graphite, Nakao centers his practice on themes of the human body and the “subtle” (kasuka). Rather than mere representation, he investigates the dynamic interaction between body, material, and the artist himself, viewing each work as the emergence of a “new body” shaped through physical action, material response, and the accumulation of time. 

Nakao’s paintings thus unfold as continuous events of body, matter, and perception. He seeks to engage the viewer’s own physical presence, transforming viewing from a purely visual act into a bodily dialogue—an approach that offers a rare and profound exploration within contemporary Japanese realism.