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The Annunaki
Sushi Saito Hanare Nanzuka
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Artists
Matthew Palladino, Ted Lawson, Jason Brown
NANZUKA is pleased to present a three-person exhibition, The Annunaki, featuring works by Matthew Palladino, Ted Lawson, and Jason Brown at Sushi Saito Hanare NANZUKA.
Matthew Palladino (b. 1985, San Francisco) is an artist represented by NANZUKA, currently based in Bolivia.
His close friends, Ted Lawson (b. 1970, Massachusetts) and Jason Brown (b. 1974, Florida), are both based in New York. Ted Lawson produces his works through multiple iterative series that conceptually overlap and intersect, employing a wide range of media from painting and sculpture to digital expressions. Jason Brown, on the other hand, is known for his paintings and sculptural works using industrial paints, adhesives, and polyurethane, skillfully combining organic and artificial elements to create pieces with a distinctive sense of materiality and presence.
The title The Annunaki refers to a group of deities in ancient Mesopotamia. In Sumerian texts, the Annunaki are described as powerful beings descending from the heavens who played a role in shaping human civilization. From the 20th century onward, however, particularly in the United States, the term has also been popularized within occult and conspiratorial discourses, portraying the Annunaki as extraterrestrials who once guided early human societies.
This exhibition presents a relief by Jason Brown, an interactive installation by Ted Lawson featuring robotic-like faces, and a sculptural work by Matthew Palladino that assimilates the themes of both Brown and Lawson into his own artistic language.
The three works in the show are different manifestations of ancient mythologies, artifacts reliefs and hieroglyphics juxtaposed against contemporary conspiracy theories, social media pop culture, AI delusions and (fever) dreams of the simulation as futurist spirituality. Both the Annunaki and AI share the notion of an external force that transcends—or is in the process of transcending—human intelligence, posing profound questions for us today.
Matthew Palladino (b. 1985, San Francisco) is an artist represented by NANZUKA, currently based in Bolivia.
His close friends, Ted Lawson (b. 1970, Massachusetts) and Jason Brown (b. 1974, Florida), are both based in New York. Ted Lawson produces his works through multiple iterative series that conceptually overlap and intersect, employing a wide range of media from painting and sculpture to digital expressions. Jason Brown, on the other hand, is known for his paintings and sculptural works using industrial paints, adhesives, and polyurethane, skillfully combining organic and artificial elements to create pieces with a distinctive sense of materiality and presence.
The title The Annunaki refers to a group of deities in ancient Mesopotamia. In Sumerian texts, the Annunaki are described as powerful beings descending from the heavens who played a role in shaping human civilization. From the 20th century onward, however, particularly in the United States, the term has also been popularized within occult and conspiratorial discourses, portraying the Annunaki as extraterrestrials who once guided early human societies.
This exhibition presents a relief by Jason Brown, an interactive installation by Ted Lawson featuring robotic-like faces, and a sculptural work by Matthew Palladino that assimilates the themes of both Brown and Lawson into his own artistic language.
The three works in the show are different manifestations of ancient mythologies, artifacts reliefs and hieroglyphics juxtaposed against contemporary conspiracy theories, social media pop culture, AI delusions and (fever) dreams of the simulation as futurist spirituality. Both the Annunaki and AI share the notion of an external force that transcends—or is in the process of transcending—human intelligence, posing profound questions for us today.
Schedule | Sep 25 (Thu) 2025-Oct 25 (Sat) 2025 Opening Hours Information
Opening Reception Sep 25 (Thu) 2025 14:00 - 16:00 | ||||
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| Fee | Free | ||||
| Website | https://nanzuka.com/en/exhibitions/the-annunaki | ||||
| Venue | Sushi Saito Hanare Nanzuka https://nanzuka.com/en | ||||
| Location | Castalia Nakameguro, 1-18-7 Aobadai, Meguro-ku, Tokyo 153-0042 | ||||
| Access | 6 minute walk from the West exit of Nakameguro Station on the Tokyu Toyoko or Hibiya line. | ||||
| Phone | 03-5422-3351 | ||||
| Related images | Click on the image to enlarge it |
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