Eri Maeda

Eri Maeda is a Japanese visual artist based in Paris. Working primarily with ceramics and occasionally photography, she hand-builds surreal, vividly colored stoneware sculptures that transform everyday objects into absurd, creature-like hybrids. Her work explores rebellion against outdated social rules, gender expectations, and the unspoken codes of behavior that shaped her upbringing in Tokyo.

Influenced by her background in branding and marketing, Maeda is fascinated by how visual strategies are used to capture attention and manipulate desire. In response, she creates “monsters”, mischievous, satirical figures. These creatures devour the toxic messages of a society that constantly tells us how to behave and how to feel less. Like the mythical beasts of folklore, they are both threatening and protective: embodiments of resistance and self-liberation.

Balancing dark humor and critique, Maeda uses pop colors and glossy finishes, unconventional in traditional ceramics to seduce the viewer before revealing unsettling details up close. Her installations often blur the line between the domestic and the surreal, inviting us to question what feels safe or familiar. Through playful satire, she exposes the passive aggression embedded in ordinary objects and social rituals.

In her photographic works, Maeda stages herself interacting with her sculptures, extending the conversation between body, object, and absurdity. Her art ultimately urges a closer look at the details, at the things we overlook, and at the quiet poisons embedded in everyday life.

Selected shows

2025: “IS THERE A ROOM FOR GAME ?”, Group Show, GALERIE PORTE B, Paris, France
2025: “Blooming of Heritage”, Group Show, Sato Gallery, Paris, France
2024: “Inappropriate“, Solo Show, Laforet Harajuku, Tokyo, Japan
2024: “A REAL WOMAN“, The Artichoke, The Gallery Season4, London, U.K.
2024: Catawiki, International Women's Day auction, Curated.
2023: "Double & Duality," Gallery N51, Milan, Italy
2023: 1000 vases, Paris, France