NEO MANEKINEKO

While visiting New York, Koga spotted a "maneki-neko" in a shop with no apparent connection to Japan. Surprised by its striking presence even within a foreign culture, this experience became the impetus for this series.
Koga's style is grounded in the classical forms of Japanese art. His signature piece {Hoyoroi Sakazuki}, for instance, takes as its motif the "kawari-kabuto" (distinctively individual helmets) of Warring States warlords, reborn as a contemporary form — with Koga adding his own "concept", a lens on contemporary society and beyond. The same holds true for this piece. Based on the typical maneki-neko form, this one wears the {Hoyoroi Sakazuki}, the sake cup that inspires ambitious young people. Also illustrated on the maneki-neko are only positive words styled after graffiti — "Get Stand Up", "Stay Gold", "Silver Lining" — messages Koga casts out toward a world suffering under the pandemic. In this way, the role long carried by the "maneki-neko" is inherited while new elements are added, updating it into a new "maneki-neko" for the present day.