Tomoko Nagai was born in Aichi Prefecture, Japan in 1982 and graduated from the Department of Oil Painting, Aichi University of the Arts in 2006. In Nagai’s artworks, various animals, children, colorful trees and mushrooms are depicted in a theatrical arrangement against the backdrop of forests and domestic rooms. Loaded with a multitude of motifs, each of Nagai’s paintings embraces a unique sense of spatiality, wherein a dynamism that encapsulates the worlds of fictional narratives intricately overlaps with layers of images. The colorful matière and brushstrokes form a fantastical rhythm as the artist exercises an expression akin to composing a musical piece. The viewer perceives this melody while standing face-toface with each painting. This evokes a sense of being inside the painting, as the viewer’s own memories and experiences - nostalgic sensations, recollections and dreams from childhood - connect with the worldview represented in each artwork.