In the Deepest Puddle II, 1995

In the Deepest Puddle II, 1995

Yoshitomo Nara, In the Deepest Puddle II, 1995, Acrylic on cotton mounted on canvas, 47 1/4 × 43 5/16 in. (120 × 110 cm), Takahashi Ryutaro Collection,  © Yoshitomo Nara 1995, photo by Keizo Kioku, courtesy of the artist
 

This painting depicts a girl with her enlarged head wrapped in bandages and her legs submerged under the surface of rippling water that echoes the bandages and haunting, bean-like eyes. The work was featured in his first major gallery exhibition in Tokyo in 1995 and appeared on the cover of Nara’s first book of paintings in 1997. It features a motif that recurs in many of Nara’s paintings and sculptures, inspired by the cover of folk singer John Hiatt’s album Overcoats (1975), which shows the singer half-submerged in water wearing his overcoat.