Representational painting has historically been about painting something from life, a photograph or a memory. Hiroshi Sato explores a new iteration of representational painting, from digital environments and virtual experiences. Working from open source 3D software, he creates scenes that speculate how space changes over time and in relation to figures and viewers. In theory, the work evolves in a way similar to digital gaming, a representation of reality, but with changes to incorporate a new perspective of space.
Similarly, in video gaming, there is an attempt to replicate the real world in higher fidelity, an attempt to be closer to reality. In fact, a natural divergence occurs from players moving inside games, a phenom known as ‘video game logic’. With no resistance to behaving counterintuitively to real world instincts, a new reality evolves to suit the players needs. Sato builds on this notion, creating environments to suit his painterly needs.
Hiroshi Sato was born in Japan but spent his formative years in Tanzania, Africa. His early environment shaped his perspective on place and time and how our experience of a place is much like a fragmented memory. Moving back to Japan for high school further complicated his perception of real and imagined space and spurred an interest in representation. Fueled by such artists as Euan Uglow, Richard Diebenkorn and Andrew Wyeth, Sato continues to explore spatial relationships, environmental restrictions and color theory. Sato studied at the Atlanta College of Art and the Academy of Art University where he received an MFA in painting. His work has been featured in Juxtapoz Magazine and Visual Art Source. He has had exhibitions in San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York.
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