“Heart Beating” (2020), oil on canvas, 33.3 x 33.3 centimeters. All images courtesy of Gallery Sumire, shared with permission

Wrapped within the piecey curls surrounding Miho Hirano‘s subjects are twigs, vine fragments, and clusters of pink blossoms. Using a cool color palette tinged with blues, the Japanese artist (previously) paints ethereal, introspective portraits of women enveloped in movement whether through small fish swimming around their torsos or branches growing from under their hair. Hirano tells Colossal that she tends to center her oil-based works around finding harmony and the inevitability of change, particularly in relation to life’s fragile nature.

Many of the pieces shown here are on view at Beinart Gallery in Melbourne, and Hirano is currently preparing for a solo show in London next year. You can see more of her dreamy paintings on Instagram.

“Blooming Relaxedly” (2021), oil on canvas, 41 x 32 centimeters

“Rest” (2021), oil on canvas, 41 x 32 centimeters

“My Wishes” (2021), oil on canvas, 33.3 x 33.3 centimeters

“Fragrance” (2021), oil on canvas, 53 x 45.5 centimeters

“Spring Breeze Blowing Through” (2020), oil on canvas, 33.4 x 33.4 centimeters

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