[Special Project] Yuzuki Solo Exhibition “Samutai”In Collaboration with the film project of Victor Boccard

「Moongirl 」follows the memories of a man who continues to long for a mysterious “moon girl” he once met. The story is filled with striking images: an enormous moon, a snow-covered landscape, a girl drawn toward Earth, and a hill of lavender. Yuzuki transforms these images into paintings, giving form to the emotions, memories, and lingering atmosphere of the story.

In the final part of the film, the protagonist visits the lavender field where the girl’s grave lies, and there meets his own end.

“My paintings are based on the setting of the film, in which the male protagonist continues to paint obsessively after the death of the mysterious ‘moon girl,’ his former lover.

In the story, there is a scene set in the snow. There, she escapes from the power of the heavens, or the moon, and chooses to live on Earth. As a result, her life is no longer eternal, and she becomes subject to death.

Victor told me that this was the moment she finally became human, and felt cold for the first time.

The air is cold, yet the time she shares with him feels somehow warm. I decided to call this feeling ‘samutai,’ a cold warmth.

I hope visitors will enjoy the landscapes and brushwork that differ from my usual works.”

Yuzuki

Although these paintings were created for the film, they are not simply illustrations. Each work stands as an independent painting, carrying the emotions, time, and afterimages of the story. The exhibition invites viewers into a space where cinema and painting meet.

【Artist Profile】

Yuzuki

Born in Japan in 2004.
Entered the Oil Painting Department at Tokyo University of the Arts in 2023.

Yuzuki creates paintings, picture books, and poems based on the story of Kanako Mineuchi, an honor-student girl who fears the caste-like hierarchies and group mentality that spread through elementary and junior high school life, and who constantly tries to remain “normal.” Through her love for Yoshizawa, an eccentric classmate who lives without worrying about how others see him, Kanako gradually begins to change, moving toward a more independent way of living as herself.

Yuzuki’s works focus on those who, within the machinery of society, have been ignored, overlooked, or treated as though they never existed.

Victor Boccard

Born in France.
After working as an actor, Victor Boccard became a film director and photographer. He studied film in Paris and has directed numerous fashion films and short films. Moon Girl is his first film project shot in Japan.