‘Ma — a very Confucius concept of the space between the edges, between the beginning and the end, the space and time in which we experience life. Ma is filled with nothing but energy and feeling. It speaks of silence as opposed to sound, of lack as opposed to excess. It is the momentary pause in speech needed to convey meaningful words, the silence between the notes that make the music.‘ Kiyoshi Matsumoto Even when I painted boxes I was interested in space and emptiness. I love the way an image can suggest the importance of pairing down and simplicity. I became particularly interested by the Japanese concept of ‘Ma’ which is described as something which relates to all aspects of life. It can be seen ‘as a pause in time, an interval or emptiness in space. Ma is the fundamental time and space from which life needs to grow.’ Box Paintings from 2017 -2021. @kiyoshi_matsumoto_ #japanesema #japaneseaesthetic #space #spaceandemptiness #thespacebetweenthings #thespacewithin #spaceswithin #thesilencebetweenthings #thepoeticsofspace