My fascination with space has been with me since childhood. The idea of plunging into the heart of a galaxy has always stirred my imagination, and that lingering sense of wonder sparked the creation of this painting. I included a staircase to bridge the world of the viewer and the world of my creation, it is a place where time and space converge—a pathway to reach the galaxy’s heart. I adjusted the staircase position to open before the viewer’s feet, beckoning them to take that first step; at first glance, the stairs appear to descend, but if you gaze far enough into this world, the overall impression is that is a pathway that rises so the viewer might walk amongst the stars. That sensation was a sign to me—I had let go of gravity.

I created this piece during the second summer of relentless heat waves. During this stressful time, I often used Ginza Station in my travels, and one day, I was suddenly struck with fear, wondering what that crowded, familiar place might look like a hundred years from now. Surely it would be alien and unrecognizable to my eyes, it might be an empty ruin, silent in the still, hot summer air.

This work blends those two feelings: the awe of the cosmos and a quiet anxiety about the future of humanity.