Rui Matsunaga
Matsunaga's works are fused with a multitude of references from ancient magics, animism and anime that all lead to a meditative sense of our universal human condition. Another perspective to seeing Matsunaga's works are that they are rooted in the Japanese background of a post nuclear bombed society and the cultural impact of that in relation to nature and fiction. They draw inspiration from mythology, folklore, popular culture to reflect an increasingly technologised world where a new spirit of mind raises a range of questions to our relationship with nature, the unseen world of the magical and the spiritual. Rui Matsunaga is currently based in London. Rui graduated from Royal Academy of Arts School in 2002. Recent exhibitions include “Into the Wild Abyss” Royal Albert Memorial Museum, Exeter. Rui was one of the finalists for John Moores Painting Prize 2012, Celeste Art Prize 2007, Lexmark European Painting Prize 2003. Her work is in the Collection of University of Arts London, Museum of Senegalia Italy, and The Mag Collection. Rui’s work has been featured in the following publications: Painting Now by Suzanne Hudson Published by Thames and Hudson in 2015 and Painting People by Charlotte Mullins Published by Thames and Hudson in 2006.