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MICHAEL RIKIO MING HEE HO

マイケルリキオ明希何

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Installation view of now that i look back it was all falling apart but the pieces were all there, a 2026 solo exhibition by Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho at Fragment Gallery, New York. The space presents a series of small-scale trompe-l’œil shaped canvas paintings arranged across white walls, each combining landscape imagery, collage logic, and handwritten text. The works function as a visual and linguistic system that examines diasporic memory, emotional fragmentation, and the performative nature of identity in a post-social media condition.

Installation view of now that i look back it was all falling apart but the pieces were all there, a 2026 solo exhibition by Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho at Fragment Gallery, New York. The space presents a series of small-scale trompe-l’œil shaped canvas paintings arranged across white walls, each combining landscape imagery, collage logic, and handwritten text. The works function as a visual and linguistic system that examines diasporic memory, emotional fragmentation, and the performative nature of identity in a post-social media condition.

Installation view of now that i look back it was all falling apart but the pieces were all there, a 2026 solo exhibition by Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho at Fragment Gallery, New York. The space presents a series of small-scale trompe-l’œil shaped canvas paintings arranged across white walls, each combining landscape imagery, collage logic, and handwritten text. The works function as a visual and linguistic system that examines diasporic memory, emotional fragmentation, and the performative nature of identity in a post-social media condition.

Installation view of now that i look back it was all falling apart but the pieces were all there, a 2026 solo exhibition by Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho at Fragment Gallery, New York. The space presents a series of small-scale trompe-l’œil shaped canvas paintings arranged across white walls, each combining landscape imagery, collage logic, and handwritten text. The works function as a visual and linguistic system that examines diasporic memory, emotional fragmentation, and the performative nature of identity in a post-social media condition.

Installation view of now that i look back it was all falling apart but the pieces were all there, a 2026 solo exhibition by Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho at Fragment Gallery, New York. The space presents a series of small-scale trompe-l’œil shaped canvas paintings arranged across white walls, each combining landscape imagery, collage logic, and handwritten text. The works function as a visual and linguistic system that examines diasporic memory, emotional fragmentation, and the performative nature of identity in a post-social media condition.

Installation view of now that i look back it was all falling apart but the pieces were all there, a 2026 solo exhibition by Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho at Fragment Gallery, New York. The space presents a series of small-scale trompe-l’œil shaped canvas paintings arranged across white walls, each combining landscape imagery, collage logic, and handwritten text. The works function as a visual and linguistic system that examines diasporic memory, emotional fragmentation, and the performative nature of identity in a post-social media condition.

Installation view of now that i look back it was all falling apart but the pieces were all there, a 2026 solo exhibition by Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho at Fragment Gallery, New York. The space presents a series of small-scale trompe-l’œil shaped canvas paintings arranged across white walls, each combining landscape imagery, collage logic, and handwritten text. The works function as a visual and linguistic system that examines diasporic memory, emotional fragmentation, and the performative nature of identity in a post-social media condition.

Installation view of now that i look back it was all falling apart but the pieces were all there, a 2026 solo exhibition by Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho at Fragment Gallery, New York. The space presents a series of small-scale trompe-l’œil shaped canvas paintings arranged across white walls, each combining landscape imagery, collage logic, and handwritten text. The works function as a visual and linguistic system that examines diasporic memory, emotional fragmentation, and the performative nature of identity in a post-social media condition.

Installation view of now that i look back it was all falling apart but the pieces were all there, a 2026 solo exhibition by Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho at Fragment Gallery, New York. The space presents a series of small-scale trompe-l’œil shaped canvas paintings arranged across white walls, each combining landscape imagery, collage logic, and handwritten text. The works function as a visual and linguistic system that examines diasporic memory, emotional fragmentation, and the performative nature of identity in a post-social media condition.

Installation view of now that i look back it was all falling apart but the pieces were all there, a 2026 solo exhibition by Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho at Fragment Gallery, New York. The space presents a series of small-scale trompe-l’œil shaped canvas paintings arranged across white walls, each combining landscape imagery, collage logic, and handwritten text. The works function as a visual and linguistic system that examines diasporic memory, emotional fragmentation, and the performative nature of identity in a post-social media condition.

Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho, i promise you ill come back, 2025. Shaped trompe-l’œil painting on dyed canvas panel featuring a fragmented, box-like surface that mimics a tilted sculptural object. The composition combines collage-style imagery and text: a Hawaiian rooster, plumeria in an ABC Stores bag, a Cafe 100 menu, a cowboy figure, and a flash-lit still life of garlic shrimp in a plastic container. A handwritten yellow sticky note reads like an intimate, unsent message about leaving and returning. The surface functions as an emotional archive, layering local Hawaiian visual culture, diasporic memory, and contemporary language. Ho’s work situates text-based painting within contemporary conceptual art, using humor, sincerity, and vernacular signage to examine identity, belonging, and post-social media selfhood. The illusionistic structure creates a sense of containment and fragmentation, aligning the painting with practices in text art, conceptual painting, and narrative collage.

Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho, childlike and cosmic, 2025. Shaped trompe-l’œil painting on dyed canvas panel constructed as a tilted, fragmented box form that projects into space. The surface layers painterly collage elements drawn from Hawaiian everyday life: a Hawaiian Sun POG can used as a planter with tomatoes, a jar labeled for “spiritual protection,” a Meadow Gold container, paniolo imagery, and local signage including hunting and agricultural references. A handwritten sticky note reads like a diaristic confession, blending intimacy with humor.

The work operates as a text-based conceptual painting and visual archive, combining vernacular language, nostalgic consumer objects, and diasporic memory tied to Hawaiʻi. Ho uses illusionistic structure and spatial fragmentation to suggest emotional containment and a performative sense of identity. The juxtaposition of “childlike” sincerity and “cosmic” reflection positions the painting within contemporary practices of language-driven art, narrative figuration, and post-internet painting, engaging themes of belonging, cultural inheritance, and the instability of selfhood in a globalized, image-saturated world.

Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho, our kuleana, 2025. Shaped trompe-l’œil painting on dyed canvas panel constructed as a faceted, box-like form that tilts into the viewer’s space. The surface assembles painterly collage elements rooted in Hawaiian vernacular culture: a jar of pickled mango with handwritten label, a potted orchid in a reused container, a garlic shrimp graphic, a small cannabis plant, and signage reading “It’s our kuleana.” Additional text fragments such as “reduce reuse recycle” and intimate handwritten notes evoke personal memory and everyday speech.

The work functions as a text-based conceptual painting and emotional archive, combining local materials, food culture, and language to address responsibility, care, and cultural inheritance in Hawaiʻi. Ho uses illusionistic depth and fragmented composition to create a sense of containment and shifting identity, aligning the painting with contemporary practices in text art, narrative painting, and diasporic conceptual art. The interplay of humor, sincerity, and vernacular language positions the work within current discourse on post-internet identity, ecological awareness, and the social construction of belonging.

Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho, she just needs space, 2025. Shaped trompe-l’œil painting on dyed canvas panel formed as a faceted, protruding box that creates an illusion of depth and physical presence. The composition combines painterly collage elements: a potted orchid, a Honolulu Humane Society adoption poster featuring a dog, and a small houseplant beside a figurative ceramic object. A handwritten sticky note reads, “my houseplant told me that she just needs some space to grow,” blending humor with emotional introspection.

The work functions as a text-based conceptual painting and intimate visual archive, using everyday imagery and vernacular language to examine care, growth, and emotional distance. Ho’s use of illusionistic structure and fragmented spatial planes suggests containment and a performative self, aligning the painting with contemporary practices in text art, narrative painting, and post-internet figuration. The interplay of sincerity and subtle irony situates the work within current discourse on mental space, relational boundaries, and diasporic identity shaped through language and memory.

Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho, on some level, 2025. Shaped trompe-l’œil painting on dyed canvas panel constructed as a faceted, box-like form that tilts forward, creating an illusion of depth and sculptural presence. The surface layers collage-style imagery and text drawn from Hawaiian visual culture: a paniolo cowboy, a monochrome portrait with phrases like “ride clean,” “stay pono,” and “the paniolo way,” a small dog from a Kauaʻi Humane Society adoption poster, and a cardboard box of bananas. A handwritten sticky note reads, “on some level wrapped warmly in my subconscious i do know that i am loved,” introducing a vulnerable, introspective tone.

The work operates as a text-based conceptual painting and emotional archive, combining vernacular language, local iconography, and personal reflection. Ho uses fragmentation and illusionistic spatial planes to suggest containment and a performed sense of self, situating the painting within contemporary practices of text art, narrative figuration, and diasporic conceptual painting. The interplay between cultural signage, care imagery, and intimate language engages themes of belonging, inherited identity, and emotional memory within a post-social media condition.

Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho, but the pieces were all there, 2025. Multi-panel shaped trompe-l’œil painting on dyed canvas, composed of two faceted, box-like forms that project outward and create a fragmented, sculptural arrangement. The surfaces feature painterly collage imagery rooted in Hawaiian everyday life: a Hawaiian Sun green tea can repurposed as a planter with handwritten note, a hanging plumeria lei inside a car at sunset, and a secondary panel depicting bananas wrapped in a blue plastic bag.

A handwritten sticky note reads, “now that i look back it was all falling apart but the pieces were all there,” framing the work as a reflective, diaristic statement. The composition functions as a text-based conceptual painting and emotional archive, layering vernacular language, local consumer objects, and nostalgic imagery tied to Hawaiʻi. Ho uses illusionistic depth and spatial fragmentation to suggest memory as a constructed, incomplete system, positioning the work within contemporary practices of text art, narrative painting, and diasporic conceptual art. The interplay of intimacy, humor, and visual fragmentation engages themes of belonging, recollection, and the unstable coherence of personal identity in a post-social media condition.

Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho, dont be a faka, 2025. Shaped trompe-l’œil painting on dyed canvas panel constructed as a faceted, protruding box form that creates an illusion of depth and spatial tension. The surface layers painterly collage elements drawn from Hawaiian visual culture: a ceramic mug reading “good friends bad habits,” a tourism-style image with the phrase “pass the aloha,” a Kaʻu coffee bag with handwritten note, and a prominently placed fish cutout with green text overlay.

The work functions as a text-based conceptual painting and visual archive, combining vernacular language, local commodities, and cultural signage. Ho’s use of humor and coded language, including Hawaiian Pidgin, introduces a sharp tonal contrast between sincerity and critique. The illusionistic structure and fragmented composition suggest containment and performed identity, aligning the painting with contemporary practices in text art, narrative figuration, and post-internet painting. The work engages themes of authenticity, cultural commodification, and the tension between local identity and external perception within Hawaiʻi.

Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho, my island girl, 2025. Shaped trompe-l’œil painting on dyed canvas panel constructed as a faceted, protruding box that creates a sense of depth and sculptural presence. The surface features painterly collage imagery of native Hawaiian birds, including an ʻapapane and ʻiʻiwi, alongside text fragments such as “certified local baddie but certified endangered,” “she got red feather,” and “protect and thrive.”

The work operates as a text-based conceptual painting and visual archive, combining vernacular humor, internet-influenced language, and ecological references tied to Hawaiʻi. Ho uses fragmentation and illusionistic structure to position the imagery as layered cultural signifiers, where endangered native species become stand-ins for identity, belonging, and preservation. The interplay of playful tone and environmental urgency situates the work within contemporary practices of text art, narrative figuration, and diasporic conceptual painting, engaging themes of cultural survival, local identity, and the commodification of “island” imagery within a global context.

Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho, if we are not the cells, 2025. Shaped trompe-l’œil painting on dyed canvas panel constructed as a faceted, protruding box that creates a sense of illusionistic depth and spatial fragmentation. The surface layers painterly collage imagery from Hawaiian everyday life: a bear-shaped honey container labeled “raw kine, uncle’s best batch,” a Big Island farmers market poster reading “from our ʻohana to yours,” and a fish graphic with bold text referencing local food culture. A handwritten note reads, “if we are not the cells then we are the electricity love, mom and dad,” introducing a tone of intimate reflection and familial voice.

The work operates as a text-based conceptual painting and emotional archive, combining vernacular language, local commodities, and personal messaging rooted in Hawaiʻi. Ho’s use of trompe-l’œil structure and fragmented planes suggests identity as a constructed and relational system, aligning the painting with contemporary practices in text art, narrative figuration, and diasporic conceptual painting. The interplay between humor, sentimentality, and cultural signage engages themes of kinship, belonging, and the transmission of values within a post-social media condition.

Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho, eat sleep play, 2025. Shaped trompe-l’œil painting on dyed canvas panel constructed as a faceted, box-like form that projects into space, creating illusionistic depth and a sculptural presence. The composition layers painterly imagery of native Hawaiian wildlife, including a hawk and ʻōpeʻapeʻa (Hawaiian hoary bat), alongside text such as “protect native species” and “mālama ʻōpeʻapeʻa.” A smaller inset panel features bold phrases “eat,” “sleep,” and “play,” combining ecological messaging with simplified, almost childlike directives.

The work functions as a text-based conceptual painting and visual archive, merging environmental advocacy, vernacular language, and graphic signage. Ho’s use of fragmentation and trompe-l’œil structure positions these elements as overlapping cultural and informational systems, aligning the painting with contemporary practices in text art, narrative figuration, and conceptual painting. The tension between urgent conservation language and playful phrasing reflects on how identity, responsibility, and care are mediated through simplified messaging within a post-internet and image-saturated context.

Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho, da land provides, 2025. Shaped trompe-l’œil painting on dyed canvas panel constructed as a faceted, protruding box that creates illusionistic depth and a sculptural presence. The composition layers painterly collage imagery rooted in Hawaiian food culture and local life: a bowl of saimin with the phrase “da land provides fo da locals,” a red reef fish cutout, chili peppers, and a scene of a chicken beside fried food and takeout packaging.

The work functions as a text-based conceptual painting and visual archive, combining Hawaiian Pidgin, vernacular signage, and everyday imagery tied to sustenance and place. Ho’s use of fragmentation and trompe-l’œil structure positions these elements as overlapping cultural systems, where food, language, and identity intersect. The interplay of humor, familiarity, and coded local language situates the work within contemporary practices of text art, narrative figuration, and diasporic conceptual painting, engaging themes of resource, belonging, and the politics of local versus external consumption in Hawaiʻi.

Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho, defend hawaii, 2025. Shaped trompe-l’œil painting on dyed canvas panel constructed as a faceted, protruding box that creates illusionistic depth and a sculptural presence. The composition layers painterly collage imagery rooted in Hawaiian food culture and local life: a goose holding purple bread, a fish cutout labeled “DA POKE SHOP,” a Spam can repurposed as a planter with tomatoes, and additional plant imagery. The background text reads “EAT LOCAL” and “DEFEND HAWAII,” invoking both everyday consumption and political messaging.

The work functions as a text-based conceptual painting and visual archive, combining vernacular language, local commodities, and graphic signage. Ho uses fragmentation and trompe-l’œil structure to stage these elements as overlapping systems of meaning, where food, ecology, and identity intersect. The interplay of humor and critique situates the work within contemporary practices of text art, narrative figuration, and diasporic conceptual painting, engaging themes of localism, cultural preservation, and resistance to commodification within Hawaiʻi.

Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho, aunty said dont overwater, 2025. Shaped trompe-l’œil painting on dyed canvas panel constructed as a faceted, protruding box that creates illusionistic depth and a subtle sculptural presence. The composition layers painterly collage imagery rooted in Hawaiian everyday life: a potted chili plant labeled “aunty said don’t overwater,” a reused container with handwritten note “best foods this one’s from seed no spray,” a painted image of an ʻiʻiwi bird, and a coastal landscape with palm trees and exposed roots.

The work functions as a text-based conceptual painting and visual archive, combining vernacular language, local agricultural practices, and ecological imagery tied to Hawaiʻi. Ho uses fragmentation and trompe-l’œil structure to stage these elements as interconnected systems of care, knowledge, and cultural transmission. The handwritten phrases evoke oral tradition and informal instruction, positioning the work within contemporary practices of text art, narrative painting, and diasporic conceptual art. The interplay of intimacy, humor, and environmental awareness engages themes of cultivation, generational knowledge, and the fragile continuity of local identity.

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Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho is a Tokyo-based artist working in text-based conceptual painting. Using shaped, illusionistic canvases, he treats language as material to examine identity, memory, and how meaning is constructed and performed in contemporary life.

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