Japanese-American artist Naotaka Hiro has developed a revolutionary approach to abstract painting that involves pushing his body to extreme physical limits. Currently featured at Bortolami gallery in New York through November 1, Hiro's latest works demonstrate his unique method of creating art while literally being inside his paintings, suspended just 13 inches above his body in a position that mimics the crawlspace beneath his Los Angeles home.
The inspiration for Hiro's unconventional technique came from a disturbing incident seven years ago when his wife texted him at Los Angeles airport, reporting someone coughing underneath their house. After canceling his flight to Japan and investigating the crawlspace, Hiro discovered evidence that someone had been living there. Rather than being frightened, he became fascinated by the claustrophobic space. "I was like, 'Wow, this is so uncomfortable,'" Hiro explained. "But then, after 30 minutes, I was like, 'This must be okay.' It was moist, quiet, and cold. I heard the sound of the other side: my dogs running around, my wife and son's voices." He described the experience as being "underneath the world."
Hiro's painting process defies conventional artistic methods entirely. Working alone in his studio without assistants, he lies flat on his back beneath canvases suspended exactly 13 inches above his body. He often cuts holes through the canvas and puts his body through these openings, allowing him to paint from inside the artwork itself. Many pieces feature attached ropes that he wraps around himself, enabling him to reach areas behind, beside, and all around him. "My body is always in contact with the surface," he said, pointing to his 2025 work "Untitled (Solvent)," which he described as "kind of like a 360-degree body scanner."
The resulting paintings are filled with abstract forms that resemble green plants, silvery fish gills, and necrotic veins, reflecting Hiro's ongoing exploration of his inner self. These works represent his quest to understand what happens inside his own body through the physical act of creation. The artist follows strict self-imposed rules during his painting sessions, setting timers for one or two hours and repeating specific movements. "I make a rule. I work within the rule. Then I break it," he explained, comparing his method to Bruce Nauman's repetitive performance-based works.
Born in Osaka in 1972, Hiro came to the United States at age 18 with limited English skills and dreams of becoming a filmmaker. However, he felt too modest to collaborate with actors and crew members, leading him to work alone. His early solo film productions eventually evolved into art-making when his preparatory storyboard drawings became props in his movies. "You know, I never really wanted to become a painter," he admitted, despite earning his B.A. in art from UCLA and his M.F.A. from CalArts.
Hiro's artistic development was significantly influenced by his time as a studio assistant to renowned sculptor Paul McCarthy, who had been his undergraduate professor. Like McCarthy, Hiro became interested in bodily functions that others might find disturbing. His early video works featured close-up shots of urination and references to vomiting and defecation. Art critics have often compared his work to the Japanese Gutai movement, a postwar avant-garde group, though Hiro notes that McCarthy actually introduced him to Gutai rather than learning about it in Japan.
The artist has built a cult following in Los Angeles, where he has lived since 1991, appearing in exhibitions organized by Jeffrey Deitch and Larry Gagosian, as well as in the prestigious "Made in L.A." biennial at the Hammer Museum. His reputation has grown internationally, with the Museum of Modern Art in New York acquiring and displaying his work alongside pieces by Joan Mitchell in 2024. Currently, his work is featured in "Roppongi Crossing," a major survey of Japanese contemporary art at the Mori Art Museum in Tokyo.
In addition to his paintings, Hiro creates bronze sculptures cast from his own body using an extremely uncomfortable process. He pours wax across his body and remains motionless for approximately two hours while it dries before casting it in bronze. These works deliberately show his imperfections, including sagging flesh and blemishes. "They are always imperfect," he said. "That's kind of how I see my body." Before the pandemic, Hiro preferred to hide his face in these works to maintain anonymity, but after contracting COVID-19 in 2020 and witnessing increased hate crimes against Asian Americans, he decided to reveal himself completely.
Fellow Japanese artist Koki Tanaka, who showed alongside Hiro early in both their careers, praised his unique approach to self-exploration through art. "He's using his body to understand his body," Tanaka observed. This philosophy continues to drive Hiro's work as he pushes the boundaries between painting and performance, creating art that challenges traditional notions of how paintings are made and what they can represent. His current exhibition at Bortolami represents the latest evolution in his decades-long journey of using physical discomfort and bodily limitations as creative tools.
