The Trophy Room LA is thrilled to present an exhibition with artist Nobuhito Nishigawara titled “Artificial Nature: Flora” The Exhibition runs from January 13-February 10th, 2024.

There will be an artist reception on Saturday, January 13th, from 5-9 pm. Please join the artist and gallery in celebration.

“Artificial Nature: Flora” combines a range of forms and expressions to unearth sensory and emotional aspects of experience. Drawing from Nobuhito Nishigawara’s immigrant experience, this series of works explores the dual cultural forces of Japan and North America that shape his relationship to identity. From his childhood in Japan to moving to North America to attend school as a young man, he recalls suppressing emotions in order to fit in. Through this work, Nishigawara creates a framework for expression from which the natural material qualities of the sculptures are shaped and define the final outcome. Refined and gestural qualities with complex forms and dynamic surface treatments reflect the duality of Nishigawara’s identity—shaped through a combination of intention and circumstance. Embracing the malleability of clay, exploring spatial relationships, and harnessing the qualities of found unprocessed materials in nature are all avenues Nishigawara uses to articulate his complex relationship to identity. The forms and materials hold layered meanings, creating a conceptual bridge to express visceral, unspoken layers of his experience. In some cases, the forms represent the space between two places he considers home—Japan and the United States— and in others, found stone reflects the prevalence of the material throughout his childhood city in Japan. Surface treatments with glaze infuse layers of meaning through color and texture applied as both a mask and an armor—hiding imperfections while constructing a visual identity.

Nobuhito Nishigawara was born and raised in Nagoya, Japan, until 1990, when he moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He studied sculptural ceramics in 1993 and graduated from the University College of Fraser Valley, British Columbia, Canada, in 1996. Nishigawara also received a BFA in ceramics from Kansas City Art Institute in 1999 and a MFA from Arizona State University in 2002.

His professional experience includes a prolific exhibition history, multiple academic positions, and assisting Ken Ferguson and Susan Peterson. In addition to his teaching duties, Nobuhito Nishigawara exhibits his local and national sculptures. Nishigawara’s significant exhibitions include Akio Takamori and Nobuhito Nishigawara at Garth Clark Gallery in New York, NY, Three Generations in Ceramics (with Don Reitz) at University of Arizona Museum in Tucson, AZ, Ceramic Exhibition (with Stephen De Staebler) at Udinotti Gallery in Scottsdale, AZ, and Japan/USA (with Jun Kaneko) at The Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe, NM.

Nobuhito Nishigawara was assigned to head the ceramics program at California State University, Fullerton, in the fall of 2006. Nishigawara is a Professor of Ceramics in the Department of Visual Arts at California State University, Fullerton.

To inquire about any of the artwork in this exhibition, please email info@thetrophyroomla.com

Installation images courtesy of Photographer: Heather Rasmussen