“Don’t make things; let them happen, instead,” is one of the basic principles underlying the oeuvre of the Berlin-based, Japanese-born artist Leiko Ikemura. In her vividly gestural, vital, disturbing, and sometimes magical paintings the artist tells of the dreams, struggles, and conflicts of human life. Nature and the world of things permeate each other in her works, just as influences of Western and Eastern cultural spheres blend in her art. The unique synthesis of two cultures visible in Leiko Ikemura’s work is the foundation for her international reputation as one of the most prominent Japanese artists of the present day. Leiko Ikemura (*1951, Japan) studied art in Granada and Seville, Spain. Afterward, she lived in Zurich, then Cologne, and is now resident in Berlin. Her body of work includes paintings, sculptures, and drawings.LEIKO IKEMURA (*1951, Japan) studied art in Granada and Seville, Spain. Afterward, she lived in Zurich, then Cologne, and is now resident in Berlin. Her body of work includes paintings, sculptures, and drawings.