Jean Nagai (b. 1979, Seattle, WA) lives and works in Los Angeles. Nagai’s paintings are rendered through intricate layers of acrylic, pumice, and mineral materials, built into rhythmic fields of abstract dots and waves. The accumulated strata suggest a sense of geological time, compressing vast temporal scales into a single pictorial surface. His process of abstract impasto pointillism draws inspiration from the complexity of nature and the unseen structures that underlie reality. The resulting compositions evoke atoms, energy fields, and interdimensional movement, emphasizing the interconnectedness of all things. Nagai’s layered surfaces invoke the stratification of human and geological activity, inviting the viewer to decipher the work as an anthropologist might read petroglyphs with traces of meaning embedded in material, awaiting interpretation.

Influenced by the misty landscapes of the Pacific Northwest and the spiritual traditions of his Japanese immigrant parents, particularly Shintoism, Nagai’s work reflects a deep reverence for nature as a living, sentient force. His paintings align with the environmental philosophy of deep ecology, exploring relationships between scale and empathy while collapsing distinctions between deep time and the present moment, and reminding viewers of humanity’s place within a larger, interconnected whole.

Nagai received a BA from Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington. He has presented solo exhibitions at Loyal (Stockholm), Sow & Tailor (Los Angeles), Chins Gallery (Bangkok), and Pt2 Gallery (Oakland). His work has been included in group exhibitions with Loyal Gallery at El Royale (Los Angeles), Diane Rosenstein Gallery (Los Angeles), Wing Luke Museum (Seattle), The Hole (New York), Over the Influence (Los Angeles), Red Arrow (Nashville), and Mini Galerie (Amsterdam). He has participated in residencies with the Tappan Collective (Los Angeles), Stairwell Gallery (Providence, RI), and the historic RAIR program in Roswell, New Mexico.

Education

2004 The Evergreen State College, Olympia, WA

Solo and Two Person Exhibitions

2024
Meet Us at the Wave Function, Loyal, Stockholm, Sweden
Moon Rabbit: Jean Nagai and Ash Wyatt, Arts Council of Lake Oswego, OR

2023
Midst Seizen, Sow & Tailor, Los Angeles, CA

2020
Seven Translations for Twilight: Jean Nagai and Lilah Rose, pt.2 Gallery, Oakland, CA

2019
The Past and Present Are Also Present, Chins Gallery, Bangkok, Thailand
There Is Know Center, pt.2 Gallery, Oakland, CA

2018
Avalon: Jean Nagai and Lilah Rose, Hilde, Los Angeles, CA
In Time: Jean Nagai and Kelly Ording, pt.2 Gallery, Oakland, CA

2017
All Are Welcome, Portland State University, Portland, OR
Dots, Rocks, and Landscapes: Jean Nagai and Peter Scherrer, Salon Refu, Olympia, WA

2016
Ultramarine, Stable Gallery, Olympia, WA
Cyan Essence, Open Gallery, Portland, OR

2015
Correctional Fluid, Salon Refu, Olympia, WA
Hydra: Jean Nagai and Lilah Rose, Site specific installation, Olympia, WA

2014
Whiteout Privilege 2, The Stable Gallery, Olympia, WA and Salon Refu, Olympia, WA
Gridlord, Las Cruxes, Austin, TX
The Well of Eternal Rose House: Jean Nagai and Lilah Rose, Stable Gallery Olympia, WA

2012
American Dreamer, Flat Color Gallery, Seattle, WA

2011
Ultimate Alternative Waver, Northern Gallery, Olympia, WA

2007
Puget Sounds, SOIL Gallery, Seattle, WA

2006
White Haze, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA

Group Exhibitions

2024
El Royale II, Loyal at El Royale, Los Angeles, CA
Double Vision, Plato Gallery, New York, NY
Signal to Noise, Diane Rosenstein Gallery, Los Angeles, CA

2023
Excuse the Interruption, Over the Influence, Los Angeles, CA
Mirrors, Spy Projects, Los Angeles, CA

2022
Reorient, Curated by Lele Barnett, Wing Luke Museum, Seattle, WA
Manscaping, The Hole, Los Angeles, CA
Heavy Light, Koplin Del Rio, Seattle, WA

2021
Full Circle, Kellogg Doolittle House, Joshua Tree, CA

2020
CUBED, The Hole, New York, NY
Collaboration with Spirit, SOIL Gallery, Seattle, WA

2019
5 Years, Mini Galerie, Amsterdam, Netherlands
By and By: Hope for Future, Durden and Ray, Los Angeles, CA
Psychotropic Seas, Curated by Jessica Breedlove Latham, Fairbanks Gallery, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR

2018
Group Show, Richard Heller Gallery, Santa Monica, CA
Rude Assembly, Campbell Projects, Sydney, Australia
The Side Eye: Visions of Periphery, Spring Break, New York, NY

2017
Out of Sight, Vital 5 Productions, Seattle, WA
RESET, Athen B Gallery, Oakland, CA

2015
Sun Spots, Big Medium, Austin, TX
Co Lab Athen B Gallery, Oakland, CA
Black, White & Wet Paint, Open Gallery, Portland, OR

2014
Fantasia 2014, Rhinoceropolis, Denver, CO

2013
Associations, Nelson St. Gallery, Atlanta, GA
Battle Hearts, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA

Artist Residencies

2017
Tappan Collective Los Angeles, CA

2016
Historic RAIR Roswell, NM (Four Months)

2007
Stairwell Gallery Providence, RI

Guest Lecturer

2016
NOVA SCHOOL, Olympia, WA
North Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ

2011
The Evergreen State College, Olympia, WA

2006
Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA