NOVEMBER 16, 2022. KATE MOTHES

“Balloons.” All images © Yuko Shimizu,

Yuko Shimizu’s whimsical illustrations are characterized by a sense of action and obscure narrative.

Abundance, repetition, and a tinge of irony accompany a cast of humans and animals through uncanny scenarios in Japanese artist Yuko Shimizu’s illustrations. Her whimsical subjects are often playful and humorous, like a pet dog in a sweater with red stripes that matches its youthful owner’s swimming suit, the pair flanked by numerous balloons in the shape of lifebuoys. In contrast, a more grave undertone emerges in “Me Too,” a reference to the #MeToo movement, as a woman stands on a mountain of eyes and attempts to brush countless more off of her body. […]

“Dutch Tulips”

“Me Too”

More: Uncanny Scenarios Unfold in Whimsical and Ironic Illustrations by Yuko Shimizu — Colossal