TOKIOL – the art line of 東京区画 / Tokiopod. The part of Tokiopod that works with artists, original works and editions, now at its first art-fair booth.
From 15 to 18 October, Tokiol steps onto the floor of an art fair for the first time. At Art Market Budapest, booth PR303, we are showing four Japanese artists who made their names on screens, in books and in the world of illustration, and who are now putting original work on the wall: unique pieces, hand-finished panels and small signed editions that you can stand in front of, and take home.
Four artists, one booth
Eisaku Kubonouchi: a leading name in Japanese manga and illustration
Eisaku Kubonouchi made his debut in 1986 in Shōnen Sunday and became widely known with Tsurumoku Dokushin Ryō (1988–1991), adapted for the cinema in 1991. He went on to create the characters for Nissin Cup Noodle’s HUNGRY DAYS campaign and for the anime Carole & Tuesday. His solo exhibitions include Isetan Shinjuku (2022), Taipei (2014), a Tsutaya bookstore in Hangzhou (2024) and 9DAYS GALLERY in Shibuya (2025).
At PR303 we show three unique drawings in Copic markers and colored pencils on Kent paper (original size B4), framed with mat, 30 × 40 cm, each with a certificate of sale: Maiko, Momiji 1 and Momiji 2.
wataboku: the hand behind the jackets of tuki.
wataboku’s practice grew out of social media and has since reached painting and exhibition. At its centre is SAI, a girl in a school uniform who recurs across hundreds of images: a face through which defiance, fatigue, tenderness and unease are registered in the eyes and the angle of a gaze. Many people know the work from the jacket illustrations for the singer-songwriter tuki. Collaborations include the Yohji Yamamoto Spring/Summer 2022 collection, and there was a solo exhibition at PARCO MUSEUM TOKYO in 2023. The work has also been shown overseas, with exhibitions in Singapore and other places abroad.
The three works we bring to Budapest, Mukuro, Saturn and Hikari, are the most distinctive things we have to show. The drawing is printed on acrylic mounted on iron, then finished by hand in genuine urushi lacquer over silver leaf, and the pattern that forms as the lacquer dries is different on every panel. Each is a unique work, framed. The full story of how they are made is on the Lacquer Portraits page.
Visualisation of the presentation. The final hang at the fair may differ.
BONJI: a young talent’s first serious works at an art fair
BONJI works almost exclusively in monochrome, and the results read like black-and-white photographs, right up to the moment you notice that every texture and every tone was made by hand. The artist began sharing work online in 2020 and built a following in Japan and abroad. In 2024 came a first solo exhibition, EYES, at 9DAYS GALLERY in Shibuya, Tokyo: the move from the screen to the gallery wall.
Budapest is where BONJI’s work goes onto an art-fair wall in earnest. Fealty is a unique work: BONJI reworked and completed the printed image by hand on the canvas panel itself, so it exists in this one state only. Beside it hang ST-01 and ST-02, each from an edition of three, narrow vertical panels that frame a moment the way a camera would. All are signed, come with a certificate of authenticity, and are framed in dark brown.
Visualisation of the presentation: Fealty. The final hang at the fair may differ.
agoera: the temperature of a passing moment
agoera lives and works in Nasu, in the highlands of Tochigi. His subjects are quiet, ordinary scenes, and what the paintings hold is less the scene than its atmosphere: the particular light and air of a moment that is already passing. He received the Silver Prize at MJ Prize 2023.
At PR303 you will find five small original paintings, from 27.3 cm to 41 cm on their longest side: Fluttering spring, Sakura canal, Determination, Prayer and One day. Determination is presented framed; the others are sold unframed. Each is a unique original.
Why it matters, and why now
Many people know these artists from a screen. Budapest is where Tokiol begins to change that: a first fair, a first booth, and a first chance to see the works in a room, among other people. If you collect, you are meeting these artists at the moment their work first appears under the Tokiol name in Europe.
How to take a work home
Come to the booth, look closely, and ask us anything. When you decide, pay with your phone: scan the QR code at the booth and complete the purchase in Tokiol's secure online checkout. Each unique work exists once, and it goes to whoever completes checkout first. Delivery of the wataboku and agoera works takes around six weeks after payment. The zines, BONJI ARTWORKS CONTRAST and VS HIKUTSU by wataboku, are on the table as samples; order them the same way and we will ship from Vienna after the fair.
Visit
Art Market Budapest 2026, booth PR303
MTK Sportpark, Kerepesi út 17, Budapest
Thursday 15 October, 11:00 to 19:00
Friday 16 October, 11:00 to 21:00
Saturday 17 October, 11:00 to 19:00
Sunday 18 October, 11:00 to 19:00
Cannot make it to Budapest? The works are also available at tokiol.io.
