Yoshimi Arts is pleased to hold Minako Nishiyama's solo exhibition, "~ destiny of Sugar Rose ~".

Artist, Minako Nishiyama garnered attention with her three-dimensional works that incorporate Japanese "girl culture", such as The Pink House (1991), reminiscent of the gigantic, Barbie house-like "Licca-chan's house", and Takarazuka Revue's backdrop-esque pieces. She is one of the leading figures in the generation of artists who began creating artworks that embodied Japan's unique subculture.

Two works from Nishiyama's Telephone Project, ♡Erica's Palpitant Teleppon Club♡ (1992) and MOSHI MOSHI Pink ~ the other side of the telephone ~ (1995), were both inspired by the adult-entertainment business in the 90s, and have indicated that the duality of pink, which symbolizes girl culture and the sex industry in Japan, intersects with consumer culture.

Since the late 1990s, Nishiyama has been using baking ingredients, such as sugar and egg whites, to produce Sugar Crown (1999), or roses, creating sweet and delicate works in an attempt to render their transformation over time. She has also explored "the essence of things" using a wide range of materials and methods, including the exploration of "barely perceptible" patterns, as seen in her Ref-work series of murals that make use of the color reflections she discovered through her strong interest in light, and, more recently, her use of video.

The exhibition features Sugar Rose, a series the artist has been developing since the 2000s, which is made entirely of sugar. Her installations using sugar roses have been presented at Rokko Meets Art 2014 (Hyogo) and the Setouchi Triennale 2022 (Takamishima, Kagawa). For the ongoing Setouchi Triennale 2025, also on Takamishima, she reintroduces the same installation in its state three years later, accompanied by a time-lapse video documenting its gradual transformation over that period.

We bring together Sugar Rose works spanning more than two decades, tracing their subtle transitions to make visible the quiet passage of time.

 
(Translated by Penguin Translation )