Isao Miura is a Japanese painter and sculptor based in London. He trained in Japan, then at the Chelsea School of Art and the Royal College of Art in London. He paints with oil colors and inks, on canvas and tatami (Japanese reed mats). His sculptures are mainly in wood and stone and other natural materials. He also makes installations using a variety of found or crafted objects, such as moss, rocks and Japanese tea ceremony utensils. Mick Goggin, Arts Service, Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea comments “…MIURA’s work reflects his Japanese background, with its emphasis on balance and harmony, and somehow recovers the Japanese influences that have suffused the  work of European artists”

Rain Dance Oil on board 17.5 x 15 inch

I grew up on a rice farm in Akita, north-west Japan. We still used horses for ploughing the rice paddies at that time. After sowing, we needed good rain to make a good rice crop, so me and my brothers and sisters tried to help by doing little dances around the fields. We hoped that Tanokami, the god of the paddy fields, would see us and understand what we wanted.

Two Trees Yellow Sky Oil on canvas 33.5" x 14.5 "

I am always amazed by how trees stay in one place but are full of energy and movement. They take power from the sun, which I have tried to convey using thick swirls of cadmium yellow to match the fountain of branches and leaves.
Trees often seem to me to be watching our every move, as we rush about and argue
or dance. They seem so wise. Sometimes I think they are discussing us.

Cool Water Oil on canvas 60 x 24 inch

This painting is a dream landscape for me, representing the Shinto ritual of purification with water before we pray to the sun goddess, Amaterasu. But it is also a painting about longing and about our journey through life.