Ages Past 1953

Kazuo Nakamura made this painting called Ages Past using oils and hardboard, but the painting feels less like an illustration and more like a quest. I can imagine Nakamura shuffling these dark shapes around on the canvas, trying different combinations like a puzzle, and the way the different components interact with each other. It is kind of magical that these three colours can suggest so much depth. I wonder, was he thinking about the vastness of space when he brushed the dark paint onto the canvas? Or maybe this was more about the act of organizing and arranging? There’s something mysterious about the smooth white shapes, especially the one with the two perfect circles cut out of it, which suggests a kind of otherworldly architecture. Nakamura plays with perspective, creating a sense of space that feels both familiar and strange. To me, Ages Past isn’t about answers, but about the infinite possibilities of looking and feeling.