B ursting forth from a sea of blooming flowers and hazy, phosphorescent skies emerge three characteristically wide-eyed and kawaii-inspired girls which have become a hallmark of Ayako Rakkaku’s practise. Radiating with energy and a sense of childlike wonder, Untitled from 2008 is an instantly recognisable example of Rokkaku's iconic portrayals of large eyed girls with exaggerated limbs. Using her fingertips as a guide, Rokkaku’s compositions pulsate with life; the wide-eyed and wondering faces of the small girls emerge from masterfully abstracted backgrounds of vibrant, florescent colour. A rare work on canvas to depict three figures sitting in large swathes of negative space, Untitled is an early example of the artist’s application of paint directly with her fingers. Foregrounding spontaneity in these earlier works, the artist has described her infamous fingerpainting technique as about “energy. When I first started painting in my studio, I was painting just for myself. But when people tell me how happy they feel when they hang my paintings in their homes, it makes me feel happier. I want to share this positive energy, and paintings can just be a form of the existence of energy” (Ayako Rokkaku, quoted in Vivienne Chow, “Ayako Rokkaku’s Dreamy Finger Paintings Build a Bridge From American Abstract Art and Japan’s Obsession with Cuteness”, Artnet News, November 23 2022).

Rising to prominence in 2006 when she won the Akio Goto Prize at Takashi Murakami’s Geisai #9 Art Fair, Rokkaku is a self-taught artist, her intuitive approach to mark making defined by a sense of instinctual dynamism and tactility. This year has seen Rakkaku’s first solo exhibition in China at the Long Museum West Bund, a test.mes nt to her enduring legacy as one of the finest Japanese artists of a generation.

在 一片盛開的花海和朦朧的螢光天空中，六角彩子筆下三個可愛風格的大眼睛女孩雙眼圓睜，一臉好奇。創作於 2008 年的《無題》洋溢著活力和童趣，是藝術家描繪四肢拉長的大眼睛女孩的典範之作。六角讓指尖作引導，手指所經之處揮灑出繽紛色彩，作品中的生命氣息脈動不止，隨心自發的作畫風格表露無遺。隨著六角近年在創作時戴上手套，這幅直接用手指塗抹顏料的早期畫布作品就更顯彌足珍貴。藝術家形容其自成一格的手指上色技術為「能量」，並說道：「我一開始在工作室畫的畫，純粹為自己而作。不過，知道有人把我的畫掛在家裡，並因而感到快樂，我就更高興了。我想分享這種正能量，而畫作可以是能量存在的一種形式。」（六角彩子，引述 Vivienne Chow ，〈六角彩子的夢幻手指畫為美國抽象藝術與日本對可愛的迷戀築起橋樑〉，《Artnet 新聞》，2022 年 11 月 23 日）

2006 年，六角彩子在村上隆舉辦的第九屆 Geisai 藝術祭上獲得 Akio Goto 大獎，從此聲名鵲起。她自學成才，直觀的作畫方法流露出原始即興的活力和肌理，別具特色。今年，龍美術館（西岸館）舉辦六角彩子在中國的首個個展，可見她已躋身當代最優秀的日本藝術家之列，作品極具價值。