LY in Tokyo

Artist LY guides us through the places and spaces in Tokyo that have galvanised her practice - including some locations that are instantly recognisable in her latest works. Photography by Niko Wu.

2 min read

Imperial Place East Gardens ,Chiyoda

Planet Park, Hachioji

Ly used to work exclusively in black and white, but after a while felt it limited her drawing and expressiveness. It was an encounter with Planet Park skatepark that pushed her perspective on this, and encouraged her to introduce grey into her palette for the first time.

Planet Park

On her first visit to this skatepark, LY was struck by the way the concrete atmosphere reflected how she was feeling. She could more accurately express her worldview by incorporating its hues in her work. Grey became synonymous with hope. Skateboarding and the skatepark are now significant motifs in her practice.

Confused LUV at Planet Park

LY's first work using grey

Shinjuku Gyoen and Imperial Gardens East

Urban escapism is a strong influence on her work. These landscapes in particular are among LY's favourite places to walk.

Shinjuku Gyoen, Shinjuku

Imperial Place East Gardens, Chiyoda

iki EXPRESSO

The restaurant scene in Tokyo appears in many of LY's paintings, and she picks out the contemporary iki EXPRESSO as her favourite place to eat out in the city.

iki EXPRESSO, Tokiwa

Confused LUV waiting outside

Tokyo National Museum and The National Museum of Western Art, Ueno

Ueno is home to cultural institutions such as zoos and museums. When LY was a child, she would visit the area with her family to see the art and paintings, and sketch her favourite animals at the zoo. The first impressions of her artistic career were made in this culturally vibrant district.

Tokyo National Museum

Tokyo National Museum

More works from LY to discover


More in this series

detail of a silkscreen print by Ai Weiwei
article

Ai Weiwei: Decoded

A guide to the symbols at play in a divine self portrait by Ai Weiwei.

4 min read
framed print hung above a long bookcase
article

Kudzi at Queercircle

Visit Queercircle in London to see Kudzanai-Violet Hwami’s first Avant Arte edition and peruse her literary picks.

2 min read
silkscreen print of a lurid green snake by Ai Weiwei
article

Ai Weiwei – Combat fear with truth

Happy Lunar New Year! As we enter the Year of the Snake, Ai Weiwei shares his wisdom for the year ahead and explains why the snake is not only the most misunderstood animal in the Zodiac, but the most pertinent symbol of our times.

3 min read
JR: Miniature Giants (Interview)
4:46
video

JR: Miniature Giants

Installations by JR are some of the most viewed artworks in the world. Ahead of our first collaboration, we visited the legendary photographer in Paris to talk about scale, scaffolding, the ever-growing ambition of his public projects and why he wants to stay naïve forever.

14 min read

Insightful?

Insightful?

Subscribe to the Avant Arte newsletter for the art world in your inbox.


Discover more insights

Gemma Rolls-Bentley poses in front of green cabinet full of various artworks
interview

Gemma Rolls-Bentley's Collection

For Gemma Rolls-Bentley, collecting begins with understanding your own values and what you represent. As a curator and creative consultant, this is how she approaches her own collection as well as those she builds for others – guided by the idea that art should hold real meaning for those who spend time with it. The art that fills her South London home is a reflection of the queer family she is creating with her wife, poet and dementia specialist, Danielle Wilde.

6 min read
Artist Magdalena Suarez Frimkess stands next to a tall blue vase with gold elephant heads, wearing a white dress, holding a walking stick
00:59
article

Magdalena Suarez Frimkess

Discover seven spellbinding decades of mischievous cartoon ceramics by Venezuelan artist Magdalena Suarez Frimkess.

Portrait photo of Cai Guo-Qiang
00:55
video

Cai Guo-Qiang

What do you know about the art of blowing things up? Chinese artist Cai Guo-Qiang has been doing it for fifty years…

Close up of JR in a red coat, sunglasses and a hat
00:59
video

JR

French artist JR takes public art to the next level. For nearly two decades, he’s made huge black-and-white photo installations in collaboration with local communities across the world. In this Artist’s Artist, we take a look at the backstory.

3 min read