Ethereal art opens limitless realms of imagination…
The works of Bryan McFarlane, a professor at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design, and Japanese painter Yasuko Hayashi share a profound affinity: both embody a sense of ethereality. Upon the flat surface of the canvas, they create boundless, three-dimensional spiritual spaces. Though their paintings verge on abstraction, they offer viewers a tangible and expansive field of imagination. These works possess not only intellectual depth, but also breadth of meaning and a heightened spiritual dimension. They reflect a dialogue—indeed, a collision—between the artist’s inner world and nature, guiding viewers toward a fresh, purified realm of perception.

Bryan McFarlane, born in Jamaica with ancestral roots in Ghana, currently lives and teaches in the United States and has traveled extensively around the world. In recent years, his practice has centered on the circle as a primary form, through which he explores light, shadow, and the soul. His philosophically rich works integrate diverse cultural experiences, continually expressing humanity’s shared natural and supernatural existence. Through an unceasing pursuit of artistic truth, McFarlane has developed a powerful visual language—one with its own vocabulary and aesthetic character. His paintings are at once complex and simple: translucent layers reveal gem-like points of light, serving as symbols that link reality with imagined пространства.

Yasuko Hayashi, born in Japan with three-quarters Fujian Chinese heritage, has likewise spent many years traveling the world, drawing creative inspiration from her journeys. Her signature themes include human remnants from past to present—ruins and architecture—as well as geometric landscapes shaped by human hands, such as irrigation channels and terraced rice fields. Grounded in real-world existence, she elevates these subjects into shared memories and fleeting senses of nostalgia that many seem to carry within. Through exceptional technique, she transforms them into landscapes of the mind that are universal yet expansive. Hayashi seeks the inner essence of what she observes, eliminating all forms that might hinder spiritual expression. Her works undergo repeated layering and reworking, each stage infused with her soul and emotional state. Though figurative in appearance, her paintings resonate with a deeply abstract spirituality.

Beyond the visible world lies a true spiritual space. Through sincere vision and inner awareness, McFarlane and Hayashi layer color and symbolic forms, enabling viewers to open their own spiritual sight and perceive a world alive with mystery and motion. Engaging with their works invites audiences into the artists’ inner realms, fostering an understanding of their concern for nature and humanity, and elevating the sensibility of both the viewer and the surrounding space.

This is a purified realm that transcends boundaries—authentic, and profoundly pure.