Imago Foundation for the Arts (IFA) will present “Japan: Inside Outside,” featuring artwork by IMAGO artist Howard Rotblat-Walker and guest artist Itsuo Kiritani in a group exhibit July 20 – August 20 at IMAGO Gallery, 36 Market Street. A free, public reception will be held on Friday, July 21 from 6 – 8 p.m.

Photographs by Rotblat-Walker focus on architectural details and interiors of Japanese residences while ink and conté crayon drawings by Kiritani present streetscapes of once traditional Japanese neighborhoods that have undergone extensive modernization as alleys and places for street dancing, neighborhood clip boards, morning sweeping, and local fire watches have been replaced with high rises and modern architecture.

Says Kiritani, “For this series, I wasn’t interested in just making records of old buildings or even doing more abstract interpretations, but rather in observing how design and function interact and create the sense of community once found everywhere in Japan.”

Commenting on his work, Rotblat-Walker notes, “In my experience, Japanese environments cause one to see the whole, but also the subtle details that add in distinctive ways to what you are seeing. The parts, their position and juxtaposition, serve to enrich the experience. I hoped that my images would play against Itsuo’s streetscapes in the same way.”

For those interested in learning more, Rotblat-Walker and Kiritani will lead a discussion about their artwork at IMAGO during the July 27 Bristol-Warren Art Night, beginning at 6:30 pm.

Paintings, drawings, photography, ceramics, collage and mixed media pieces by other IMAGO artists, including Eileen Siobhan Collins, Rose Esson-Dawson, Mary Dondero, Betty Harrington, Carl Keitner, Pascale Lord, Linda Megathlin, Eileen Mayhew, Yolanda Mazzoni, Mercedes Nuñez, Anne Marie Rossi, Lenny Rumpler, and Howard Windham, will also be on display.