Digital artist Yusuke Shigeta brings stories to life dot by dot

The Yomiuri Shimbun

12:33 JST, June 15, 2022

FUNABASHI, Chiba — An exhibition featuring leading works of digital artist Yusuke Shigeta is being held at H.C. Andersen Park’s Kodomo Art Museum in Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture.

A graduate of the Tokyo University of the Arts graduate school, Shigeta since 2009 has been creating animated artworks generated from square pixels of light that are grouped together to form images.

Despite advances in display technology, Shigeta sticks with coarse resolution for his pixel art, which is also called dot art.

Five of Shigeta’s works are on display at the “Shikakui Keshiki” (Square scenery) exhibition, including “Gaso no Mori” (Pixel Forest), in which images from fairy tales are projected from the ceiling onto white books that visitors hold in their hands. The piece dates from 2012.

“Sekigahara-Sansui-zu-Byobu,” is based on a landscape painting from the early 17th century — designated as an important cultural property — that depicts the Battle of Sekigahara, which occurred in what is now Gifu Prefecture.

This work measures 8 meters wide and 3.5 meters tall and was created in 2021. Samurai move through the scenery in a reconstruction of the historic battle.

“Ink-brush paintings can become joyful and approachable when expressed with dots, making them easier to be appreciated by both children and adults,” Shigeta said.

The exhibition runs through July 18.