I recently learned about sculptor Yoshitoshi Kanemaki, and quickly found myself drawing mental parallels between his style and that of animation legend Satoshi Kon, which probably says more about my own sensibilities than about either artist. The works of both appear rooted in Japanese tradition, but are very much contemporary, and both are nuanced in their forms of expression and trust viewers to draw their own conclusions. Both are similarly introspective and undeniably original.

Kanemaki’s works appear classically grounded, typically carved from a single piece of wood using traditional techniques. But that stability quickly gives way to something more uncanny: limbs elongate unnaturally, bodies stretch or compress, surfaces interrupt themselves with seams or abrupt shifts in volume. There’s a distinct sense of glitching at play, as if the figures were caught mid-render or desynchronized in time.