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Naoki Saito "Respawn Point"
Kaikai Kiki Gallery
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Artists
Naoki Saito
Kaikai Kiki Gallery is pleased to announce “Respawn Point”, the first solo exhibition by Naoki Saito, which will open on February 28, 2025.
Naoki Saito is a well-known illustrator for a popular card game, a character designer, and a content creator who shares his artistic know-hows with 643,000 subscribers (as of January 27, 2025) through his YouTube channel.
Although he has long primarily created art digitally, a turning point came on March 9, 2024, when he released a YouTube video titled “What Happens When a Professional Artist Does Graffiti on the Wall of a Shop?”. This video caught the attention of Takashi Murakami, who subsequently invited Saito to try his hand at analog painting.
Within just a few days, the concept for his solo exhibition at Kaikai Kiki Gallery was formed, and in no time, he completed his first acrylic painting, “SAMURAI GIRL 桜 -SAKURA-“.
This piece made its debut at Art Basel Hong Kong 2024 in March, and he has since presented additional new works at other international art fairs such as Taipei Dangdai 2024, Tokyo Gendai 2024, and Asia NOW 2024.
Saito’s works are deeply rooted in the visual language of trading card games and social games, realms in which he has long been active. His unique composition style places the character’s full body within a 10:7.16 vertical frame—consistent with trading card aspect ratio—while enlarging the character’s head for dramatic effect. This distinctive visual structure, unprecedented in the history of traditional painting, is something Saito developed through years of working on social game illustrations.
For this exhibition, Saito began creating analog paintings based on his “SAMURAI GIRL” NFT trilogy, which were originally released in 2021, incorporating the trading card frame format into physical artworks.
Additionally, he has expanded into using circular and square canvases, with his largest tondo pieces incorporating gold leaf on acrylic painting, further pushing his artistic techniques. His evolving skills are reflected in each new work, as he rapidly absorbs new analog painting methods.
“Respawn Point” serves as the grand culmination of this groundbreaking project, which began in March 2024 and gradually unfolded through various international art fairs in which Kaikai Kiki Gallery has participated.
We invite you to witness Naoki Saito’s bold exploration into the world of analog painting, developed through a year of dedicated effort.
Naoki Saito is a well-known illustrator for a popular card game, a character designer, and a content creator who shares his artistic know-hows with 643,000 subscribers (as of January 27, 2025) through his YouTube channel.
Although he has long primarily created art digitally, a turning point came on March 9, 2024, when he released a YouTube video titled “What Happens When a Professional Artist Does Graffiti on the Wall of a Shop?”. This video caught the attention of Takashi Murakami, who subsequently invited Saito to try his hand at analog painting.
Within just a few days, the concept for his solo exhibition at Kaikai Kiki Gallery was formed, and in no time, he completed his first acrylic painting, “SAMURAI GIRL 桜 -SAKURA-“.
This piece made its debut at Art Basel Hong Kong 2024 in March, and he has since presented additional new works at other international art fairs such as Taipei Dangdai 2024, Tokyo Gendai 2024, and Asia NOW 2024.
Saito’s works are deeply rooted in the visual language of trading card games and social games, realms in which he has long been active. His unique composition style places the character’s full body within a 10:7.16 vertical frame—consistent with trading card aspect ratio—while enlarging the character’s head for dramatic effect. This distinctive visual structure, unprecedented in the history of traditional painting, is something Saito developed through years of working on social game illustrations.
For this exhibition, Saito began creating analog paintings based on his “SAMURAI GIRL” NFT trilogy, which were originally released in 2021, incorporating the trading card frame format into physical artworks.
Additionally, he has expanded into using circular and square canvases, with his largest tondo pieces incorporating gold leaf on acrylic painting, further pushing his artistic techniques. His evolving skills are reflected in each new work, as he rapidly absorbs new analog painting methods.
“Respawn Point” serves as the grand culmination of this groundbreaking project, which began in March 2024 and gradually unfolded through various international art fairs in which Kaikai Kiki Gallery has participated.
We invite you to witness Naoki Saito’s bold exploration into the world of analog painting, developed through a year of dedicated effort.
Schedule | Feb 28 (Fri) 2025-Mar 21 (Fri) 2025 Opening Hours Information
Opening Reception Feb 28 (Fri) 2025 18:00 - 20:00 | ||||
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| Fee | Free | ||||
| Venue | Kaikai Kiki Gallery http://en.gallery-kaikaikiki.com/  | ||||
| Location | B1F Motoazabu Crest Bldg., 2-3-30 Motoazabu, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-0046 | ||||
| Access | 8 minute walk from exit 1 at Hiroo Station on the Hibiya line, 13 minute walk from Azabu-juban Station on the Toei Oedo or Namboku line. | ||||
| Phone | 03-6823-6038 | ||||
| Related images | Click on the image to enlarge it |
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