Kaoru Ueda

Kaoru Ueda (1928–) was a Japanese painter known for his hyper-realistic depictions of everyday objects. Born in Yoyogi, Tokyo, Ueda graduated from the Tokyo University of the Arts in 1954. Initially working as a graphic designer, he turned his focus to painting in the late 1960s, developing a unique style that combined photographic precision and painterly expression. His canvases capture fleeting moments with meticulous detail—the cracking of an egg, a knife piercing a mold of jello, a photograph set aflame—each image challenging the viewers’ perceptions of reality.

Ueda’s work has been exhibited widely throughout Japan and internationally, including solo and group exhibitions at the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum (1974, 1976, 1978, 1993, 2024); Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art (1976, 1997); Hokkaido Museum of Modern Art (2023); Ibaraki Museum of Modern Art (2021); Kanagawa Prefectural Museum of Modern Art, Hayama (2017); Gwangju Museum of Art (1995); and the Egyptian International Print Triennial, Cairo (1997). He also held academic positions, serving as a professor at Ibaraki University from 1985 to 1993.

His paintings are held in numerous public collections, including the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo; Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum; National Museum of Modern Art, Mexico City; and Queensland Art Gallery in Brisbane, Australia.