The ever-observant Sho Shibuya is known for his daily meditations blanketing the covers of The New York Times. From trenchant commentary on global happenings to peaceful gradients depicting the sky, the artist’s paintings are a tactile record of contemporary life, considering elements both in our control and not.
Shibuya returns to Unit London this month with Falling From The Sky, a collection of works covered in trompe l’oeil droplets. Although typically despised more than bright sun and cloudless skies, rain offers endless inspiration for the artist as he watches a downpour “dance and drift across the glass, creating shapeshifting patterns, leaving streaks that track the wind,” he says. “I love the way these patterns never repeat, perpetually unique.”
Spanning 30 paintings in acrylic, Shibuya reminds us of the diversity of wet weather. Sometimes we look out and only see haze, while others surprise us with a vivid rainbow of color. The artist is particularly fond of a damp, gray forecast, though. “I met my wife on such a day. It was pouring when we both stepped into a quiet Japanese restaurant, each carrying an umbrella. Our first words, of course, were about the rain,” he says.
While Shibuya reveres the rain, he’s not one to ignore what it means to enjoy darkened clouds. He says:
In other parts of the world, the sky is not gentle. It’s not rain that falls, but bombs. The same grey clouds that comfort me here cast shadows of fear elsewhere. Where I see beauty, others see smoke. Destruction. Silence broken not by soft drops, but by blasts. That contrast stays with me. These paintings are not just invitations to pause and reflect, but reminders of what peace looks like. And how fragile it is.
Falling From The Sky is on view from August 20 to September 17. Explore an archive of Shibuya’s works on Instagram.
