The Las Vegas Art Museum is pleased to present an exhibition of recent paintings by Sush Machida Gaikotsu, April 13 – July 8, 2007. The exhibition is the second installment in the Las Vegas Art Museum’s ongoing 702 Series. The 702 Series features solo exhibitions by artists who were born or raised in Las Vegas, who initiated their careers in Las Vegas, or who live and work in our city today. The series showcases works by artists who exhibit regularly in one or more major art centers, and have achieved national or international recognition for their accomplishments.

Born in Maebashi City, Japan, Gaikotsu has been a Las Vegas resident since 1999. His works are regularly exhibited in galleries in Los Angeles and Tokyo. Gaikotsu blends Eastern and Western artistic traditions in figurative paintings that often feature stylized animals, such as fish, cats, rats, birds, and snakes. These figures are often interwoven with American-style Pop elements, such as a pack of Marlboro cigarettes, an M & M candy package, and graphics derived from snowboarding and skater logos, and tattoos. In recent works, the artist has reinterpreted the rhythmic and playful qualities found in the paintings of Edo-period Japanese masters, such as Jyakuchu Ito and Okyo Maruyama, while updating the compositions with complex structures that speak the current language of the digital computer screen.