Sato Gallery is delighted to present Mayumi Nakao’s first solo exhibition in Europe: “Sweet Memories.” The charm of Mayumi’s work lies in the narrative warmth it radiates. Her own sense of loneliness, felt when she moved from Japan to the United States, was profoundly transformed when she discovered her New York friends’ family photographs.

Feelings of love and family bonds, passed down from generation to generation, transcend the boundaries of race, culture and country; they form a shared affection held in common by humanity across time and space. Through her art, she expresses this notion of “shared nostalgia.”

For this exhibition, she has created new works including portraits of African American friends’ families in a traditional style, as well as previously unseen works featuring her own family. There is much anticipation to discover the stories these works, offering a glimpse into the artist’s nostalgic memories, might evoke. Everyone will likely recognise a scene tinged with nostalgia from their own childhood.