Gajin Fujita begins each of his paintings with a preparatory drawing, or drawings, through which he determines scale, composition and palette. He then actively uses the drawing to make the painting: cutting away its components to create intricate stencils. After gold leafing wood panels and tagging with graffiti, Fujita lays the stencil over the painting’s surface, securing its placement with small weights. He then sprays through the stencil, building and layering color until he achieves the desired result. (This process is akin to the traditional Japanese art form of ukiyo-e woodblock printmaking, which employs a form of color separation.) After Fujita has finished using the stencil, he reunites it with its cut-out components to form the original drawing composition, and mounts it on a paper support.

Click here for a short film that documents Fujita’s process from beginning to end.

To learn more about the artist’s works, visit the online exhibition guide for his recent L.A. Louver exhibition Warriors, Ghosts and Ancient Gods of the Pacific. 

IMAGES: (top to bottom) Gajin Fujita, Study for Demon Slayer, 2015, spray paint and pencil on archival paper, 68 ¾ x 104 ½ in. (174.6 x 265.4 cm); Gajin Fujita, Demon Slayer, 2015, spray paint, paint markers, Mean Streak, 12k white gold, 24k gold and platinum leaf on wood panels, 6 panels, overall: 60 x 108 x 1 ¾ in. (152.4 x 274.3 x 4.4 cm)