Mio Yamato’s Red Dots Infused with Vital Force

A multitude of red dots stretches across the canvas, sometimes filling its entire surface. Through this restrained, seemingly mechanical repetition, Mio Yamato brings forth a world that is organic and full of life. Her signature series, RED DOT, pulses with a quiet yet undeniable vitality.

‘I began using dots after I came across a flowerpot covered in moss at my mother’s orchid greenhouse,’ the artist recalls. ‘Moss senses temperature and humidity, and naturally grows toward the place where it can survive. At the time, I felt stuck—both in life and in my creative practice. I think I was drawn to that vital, inevitable form the moss created in order to live.’

On her Instagram, Mio Yamato shares glimpses of her meditative process, painting each dot by hand in a meticulous rhythm. ‘I start by drawing a row of dots along the edge of the canvas, then build up the next rows while observing the ones before them, to preserve their size and spacing. But once the piece reaches a certain point, I begin to loosen the rules. Sometimes I allow a cluster to spread out, as though the dots themselves are seeking direction. Like moss, the painting slowly grows toward the place it wants—or needs—to live.’

Alongside RED DOT, the artist has developed other series that engage the body just as intimately. In BREATH, she creates translucent circles by blowing into red paint, like forming soap bubbles. The under my skin series, in contrast, evokes the activity of blood cells coursing through the body. In each case, the artist’s physical engagement is central to the work. ‘I’m always completely exhausted after painting… and starving!’ she laughs. Marked by breath, repetition, and the rhythm of the body, her works seem to radiate the raw energy of life itself.

More about Mio Yamato on the artist’s official website.

Mio Yamato

Born in 1990 in Shiga Prefecture, Mio Yamato graduated from Kyoto University of the Arts in 2015. Her work was recently featured in a solo exhibition at Gallery THEO in Seoul, held from February 14 to March 22, 2025. This coming October, she will publish her first monograph, accompanied by a commemorative exhibition.