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Sagaki Keita was born in 1984 in Japan and received an MFA from Fukushima University in 2008.
His drawings are imitations of famous artworks made up of thousands of original characters. At a distance his pictures appear mere recreations of popular paintings and sculptures, but viewed close up thousands of small characters reveal themselves, which together form a complex and detailed composition.
Keita is interested in the emergence of life and has created many works along the motifs of conception and birth. Another recurring theme is mandalas—consistent symmetric compositions, hand-drawn on carbonic paper. His recent subjects include famous paintings, such as the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci and Ukiyo-e by Hokusai Katsushika, and iconic images, such as the American flag and skull.
Regardless of his subject, Keita implements his technique of many miniature characters forming one big picture. His characters are sometimes illustrations of historical personages or customs, but often there is no relationship at all, and no overarching theme. The contrast between this unorganized and the specific theme is typical of his work, he says.
Keita lives in Tokyo. His work has been exhibited across Japan and in Portugal.
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