Contemporary Japanese Prints
Tadayasu Sakai
I.
Today prints are a popular genre of contemporary art. They are made by both painters and sculptors and are no longer the exclusive province of professional printers. This expanded use of print media has led to new developments in printing techniques and the resulting artworks have gone far beyond the conventional concept of prints.
This exhibition has been organized to introduce the contemporary prints of Japan. It includes 75 works by 46 artists, all from the Japan Foundation collection. The works range from the 1950s, when Japan was just beginning to recover from the damage of the Second World War, to the present in order to give a broad overview. A wide variety of artists and types of work has also been selected to give the spectator a good idea of the range of this art form in postwar Japan.
The exhibition includes artists with quite long careers as well as younger artists who have just emerged on the scene. We have set 1950 as a cutoff point since that year marked a watershed in contemporary Japanese art. The current situation of contemporary art in this country is very different from what it was prior to 1950. There is an important legacy of styles from the thirties and forties, however, which should be kept in mind, and this historical perspective helps an understanding of the contemporary significance of Japanese prints, which was major consideration in organizing this exhibition. This is why we have included artists who were chiefly active during the thirties and forties, although the works of these artists selected for exhibition date from the fifties and after since that is when they began to receive proper recognition.
II.
The exhibition is devided roughly into five categories. These division are of course somewhat arbitrary and may overlap in some cases.
(1) Older artists who have concentrated on prints over a long career. They have revived the art of cutting woodblocks and applied modern formal ideas to their prints.
(2) Leading Japanese artists, not professional printers, who made original artists' prints, mainly in lithography, from 1950 on. They successfully broke away from the influence of the United States and Europe.
(3) Etchers. The techniques of etching were invented in Europe and brought to Japan in the middle of the eighteenth century while Japan was maintaining a self-imposed isolation from the rest of the world. Etching continued to develop in line with advances in modern science and attracted the interest of enlightened thinkers. In spite of this historical background, the technique of mezzotint was all but forgotten in the West in recent years when it was revived by Japanese artists.
(4) Internationally active contemporary artists who experiment with art forms beyond the conventional boundaries of prints and painting. These artists are concerned with formal issues and they work mainly in silkscreen and lithography. They follow in the tradition of the artists in category (2).
(5) Younger artists who have expanded the applications of print media, including photography and relief printing. This group includes graphic designers and installation artists who have made extensive use of prints and artists who have added film and video images to the concept of printmaking.
III.
In order to understand the historical background of contemporary Japanese prints, it is first necessary to look at the prewar art movements of the late twenties and thirties which were related to the international trends of modern art.
The Great Depression which began with the Wall Street stock market crash of 1929 affected the entire world for the next five years. This economic crisis had a damaging effect on the art world. Many art dealers in Paris, then the world art center, had to close their doors. The School, of Paris, an amalgam of the new art movements of the early twentieth century, the avant-garde experiments of French Fauvism and Cubism, Italian Futurism and Metaphysical Painting, German Expressionism, and Russian Constructivism, went into decline.
Japan, undamaged by the First World War, enjoyed a period of prosperity immediately after the war. Art and culture flourished and many Japanese artists were going to Paris and bringing the latest art trends home. These new ideas were received enthusiastically by younger Japanese artists, and the new art movements began to challenge the Japanese art establishment which was dominated by a mix of French academicism and Impressionism. A number of avant-garde groups appeared and carried out public demonstrations, to some extent resembling the anti-establishment movements like Dadaism and Expressionism which emerged in Europe during and after World War I.
The Japanese avant-garde split up into many small groups about the time of the Great Depression, each marked by different theories and ideologies, lust as the avant-garde scene was becoming more fragmented, militarism and cultural fascism were gaining strength, and the anti-establishment art movements were effectively suppressed by reactionary political forces. Even the use of the word free in the names of art groups was forbidden. In this oppressive historical situation, Surrealism had a special appeal for young artists who were critical of the tendencies of the times. Fauvism, a legacy of the School of Paris, was used to good effect by some artists. Artists were faced with many problems, however, especially the requirement to paint pictures supporting the war. Generally speaking, it is clear in retrospect that the new art movements were never able to take root despite the initial enthusiasm in the twenties and thirties.
IV.
After the Second World War, the Japanese art world welcomed the "postwar art" carried forward by a small number of artists who had formed their artistic identity before the war and continued to develop their artistic ideas during the war. Many hailed the loss of the war as a "second opening of the country." Japanese artists again became alert to international trends in contemporary art. A major stimulus was provided by the Salon de Mai exhibition held in Japan in 1951. It introduced a new generation of French artists working in an eclectic modernist style based loosely on Cubism and other modem movements. This lyrical modernism influenced a number of Japanese painters who began working in an abstract style. As society began to return to normal in the early 1950s, museums of modern art were built in Kamakura and Tokyo, Japanese exhibiting societies were reorganized, and independent (unjuried) exhibitions were organized to provide a venue for young artists. By the mid-fifties, a decade after the war, "postwar art" had reached a decisive turning point.
The "World Art Now" exhibition of 1956 introduced the art informel of lean Fautrier, Karel Appel, and lean Dubuffet. The next year saw another informel exhibition, "World Contemporary Art," organized by the French critic Michel Tapie, a leader of this movement, which made a huge impact on the Japanese art world, setting off the "informel storm." This French movement and American action painting had a great deal of influence in Japan, emphasizing the act of painting and suggesting a radical departure from ordinary painting theory. About this time Japanese artists began to participate more actively in international exhibitions. Many artists were working overseas and reacted quickly to new art movements in New York as well as Paris.
American contemporary art, as exemplified by Pop Art, was very experimental, responding to new developments in industrial technology and modern consumer society. The late sixties saw a plethora of artistic experiments using science and technology, including light art, kinetic art, and computer art. As the saying went, "When America sneezes, ]apan catches cold," and Japanese artists adopted the American trends with alacrity. Environments and site-specific art, which sought a direct relationship with the audience, exerted an influence on sculpture and the design of architectural spaces and city planning, and there was considerable interaction between these fields.
These rapid changes in art fashions continued to be adopted in a haphazard fashion in Japan up through the eighties. Early modernism might be thought of as a blurring of the relationship between art and technology, but the contemporary art produced since the fifties has led to a re-examination of the issue of the autonomy of art. The various experiments in the visual arts have reached a point where continual change, once thought to have infinite possibilities, is no longer effective. Major social changes on a global scale have made the world a different place.
In the eighties, there has been a critical reappraisal of nineteenth-century art, especially Symbolist painting. This is part of a renewed interest in examining the tragedy and anxiety of human life. Finding connections with occult and mystical ideas, it is an attempt to restore human values and understand the truth ot human existence.
V.
The prints shown in this exhibition demonstrate the changes in Japanese art between the 1950s and the 1980s in many different ways, reflecting the experience of the individual artist.
The making of prints by artists rather than professional printers is a postwar phenomenon seen throughout the world, greatly enriching and expanding the artistic possibilities of prints. Contemporary Japanese print artists have profited greatly by the recent flourishing of international artistic exchange. There are now many more opportunities for Japanese artists to show their work overseas as well as to see foreign art in Japan. A number of large-scale traveling exhibitions of contemporary Japanese art 'have been organized recently with the help of the Japan Foundation. Japanese printmakers have received special recognition in many international exhibitions, including the major biennial exhibitions at Venice and Sao Paulo. Contemporary printmaking in Japan has reached a very high level.
46 Japanese artists participated in the first Sao Paulo Biennale in 1951, showing great enthusiasm for active international exchange. The Japanese entries in print section came in for special attention. Tetsuro Komai and Kiyoshi Saito won prizes in 1951 and four years later Shiko Munakata won the top award. Japan began participating in the Venice Biennale in 1952, and Munakata won the international print prize at the Biennale in 1956. Yozo Hamaguchi took first prize in the international print section at Sao Paulo the next year. Thus Japanese printmakers quickly established a reputation in international competitions.
Japanese artists also did well in competitions restricted to the graphic arts. Chimei Hamada, Hodaka Yoshida, and Hideo Hagiwara won awards at the Lugano International Biennial Exhibition of Prints as did Mitsuo Kano, Junichiro Sekino, Shoichi Ida, and Gaku Onogi, Kosuke Kimura, and Ay-0 at the Biennial of Graphic Art, Ljubljana, Yugoslavia. Kumi Sugai won the main prize at the first International Print Biennale, Krakow, in 1966, and Akira Kurosaki, Tetsuya Noda, Kuniichi Shima, and Takesada Matsutani also won prizes in the same exhibition in later years. These achievements illustrate how postwar Japanese printmakers active in the fifties and sixties ranked in the world. Masuo Ikeda, an especially popular artist, won first prize for his prints at the Venice Biennale in 1966, Fumiaki Fukita won first prize at the Sao Paulo Biennale the next year, 1967, and Tadanori Yokoo won first prize for prints at the Biennale de Paris in 1969, firmly establishing a high international reputation for contemporary Japanese prints.
With the growing interest in prints an International Biennial Exhibition of Prints in Tokyo was started in 1957, and this was an important showcase for young Japanese artists experimenting with the function and expressive possibilities of prints. This is where Masuo Ikeda was first noticed, by an international judge, Will Grohmann. Tetsuya Noda also won a first prize in Tokyo in 1968 and went on to win first prizes at Ljubljana in 1977 and at the Norwegian International Print Biennale in 1978.
There are various reasons for the success of contemporary Japanese artists in international print exhibitions. One is the compatibility of Japanese esthetic traditions-subtle gradations of light and color and dynamic variability of line-with print media. Prints have been a familiar means of artistic expression in Japan for a long time. Woodblock prints have been especially popular. Contemporary artists, whether they admit it or not, have benefited from this legacy of the past. Even the copperplate etchings by Japanese artists reflect the esthetics of ink painting, a realm of deep blacks and subtle whites. A renewed sense of traditional esthetic concerns and a rriodern sensibility have come together to create the rich and varied forms of artistic expression found in today's prints. The expansion of the market for prints is another factor which cannot be overlooked.
A broadening of the concept and function of prints has caused great changes in the working processes of individual artists, and new technologies have revolutionized the concept of prints as a means of artistic expression. The old idea of prints as a means of reproduction, an indirect, supplementary art form, must be reconsidered.
Brief Personal Histories of the Artists
Ay-O
Born in Ibaraki Prefecture in 1931. Graduated in art from Tokyo University of Education in 1954. Formed ]i-tsuzaisha (Real Beings) group with Masuo Ikeda and others. Moved to New York in 1962. Became a member of the Fluxus group in New York. Began making works distinguished by rainbow-colored stripes in 1964. Exhibited in 1966 Venice Biennale. Won special prize at Vancouver International Prints Biennial. Won Tokyo National Museum of Modern Art Prize at International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Tokyo, in 1970. Exhibited in Sao Paulo Biennale in 1971.
Shiro Fukazawa
Born in Tochigi Prefecture in 1907. Died in 1978. Studied painting with Ryuzaburo Umehara, but changed to printmaking in 1965. Exhibited in Biennial of Graphic Art, Ljubljana, in 1969. Won the Poznan City Prize at the International Print Biennale, Krakow, in 1970. Has been producing the Sharaku series since 1972. His style combines clarity of composition with a sense of humor.
Yukio Fukazawa
Born in Yamanashi Prefecture in 1924. Graduated in painting from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts in 1948. Invited by Mexican government to teach etching in Mexico in 1963. Won award in Biennale Inter-nazionale della Grafica d'Arte, Florence, in 1972. Creates an illusionary world with a variety of etching techniques and sure draftsmanship.
Fumiaki Fukita
Born in Tokushima Prefecture in 1926. Won the Onchi Prize at the Japan Print Association exhibition in 1957. Won first prize in the print division of the 1967 Sao Paulo Biennale. Won purchase award at Biennial of Graphic Art, Ljubljana, in 1969. Uses press to print from woodblocks. Strong, expressive abstract style conveys the expansiveness of the universe.
Katsura Funakoshi
Bom in Morioka in 1951. Graduated in sculpture from Tokyo University of Art and Design in 1975. Helped organize Shingusho Chokoku (New Realism in Sculpture) exhibition in 1976. Selected to represent lapan in 1988 Venice Biennale. Made portrait sculpture of Mr. and Mrs. Anthony Caro in 1991 which was included in a show at Annely luda Fine Art in London. Began making etchings in 1989. With gifted draftsmanship, explores new approaches to realistic expression.
Hideo Hagiwara
Born in Yamanashi Prefecture in 1913. Graduated in painting from Tokyo School of Art in 1938. After a serious illness, switched from painting to woodblock in 1955. Won the Grand Prize at the Lugano International Print Exhibition in 1962. Won the Science Academy Prize at Biennial of Graphic Art, Ljubljana, in 1963. Taught printmaking at the University of Oregon in 1967. Succeeded in combining abstract expression with traditional woodblock techniques, achieving an international reputation.
Chimei Hamada
Born in Kumamoto in 1917. Graduated in painting from Tokyo School of Art in 1939. Studied etching with Tetsuro Komai and lunichiro Sekino. Produced series of etchings strongly critical of war, Lament of a First-Year Soldier. Won second prize at Lugano International Print Exhibition in 1956. Exhibited in the Biennial of Graphic Art, Ljubljana, in 1957. Traveled in Europe in 1964. Held one-man show at the Albertina Graphics Collection in Vienna in 1979.
Yozo Hamaguchi
Born in Wakayama in 1909. Left sculpture course in Tokyo School of Art in 1930 and went to France. Studied oil painting and printmaking on his own. Developed a color mezzotint technique. Won prize for excellent work at Sao Paulo Biennale in 1957. Won Grand Prize at Biennial of Graphic Art, Ljubljana, in 1961. Makes etchings with profound coloring and texture using a few still-life objects or a simple landscape as subject matter.
Katsura Funakoshi
Bom in Morioka in 1951. Graduated in sculpture from Tokyo University of Art and Design in 1975. Helped organize Shingusho Chokoku (New Realism in Sculpture) exhibition in 1976. Selected to represent Japan in 1988
Takeshi Hara
Born in Nagoya in 1942. Graduated in painting from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts in 1969. Began making lithographs in 1965 while still a student. Exhibited in International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Tokyo, in 1970. Exhibited in British International Print Biennale, Bradford, and Biennale Internazionale della Grafica d'Arte, Florence, in 1976. Known for Strokes series.
Kiyoshi Hasegawa
Born in Yokohama in 1891. Died in 1980. After graduating from Azabu Middle School in 1910, became ill and decided to become an artist. Helped found the publication Seihai (Holy Grail) in 1912 and made wookblock prints for it. Learned about etching techniques from Bernard Leach during the latter's stay in )apan, 1914. Moved to Paris in 1919 and based his activities there. Began studying the maniere noire technique in 1920s and developed his own original methods. Help raise the standards for etching in postwar Japan to world levels.
Joichi Hoshi
Born in Niigata in 1913. Died in 1979. Graduated in Western-style painting from Musashino Art University. Began studying woodblock printing on his own in 1959. Exhibited in Sao Paulo Biennale in 1967. Started series with tree motifs in 1970s. Made dense woodcut images using oil-based inks.
Shoichi Ida
Born in Kyoto in 1941. Graduated in western painting from Kyoto City University of Arts, 1965. Went to France for further study in 1968. Started series Surfaceis the Between in 1970. Expanded concept of prints by printing both the front and back of the paper and imbedding small stones in the paper. Won third prize at the International Print Biennale, Krakow, in 1978. Won second prize at the Biennial of Graphic Art, Ljubljana, in 1981. Won honorary prize at Asian Art Biennale Bangladesh in 1986.
Masuo Ikeda
Born in Shenyang, China, in 1934. Returned to lapan after the war and in 1952 graduated from Nagano Pre-fectural Nagano North High School. Formed \itsuzaisha (Real Beings) group with Ay-O and others in 1955. Began making etchings in 1956. Won the Minister of Education Prize at the International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Tokyo, in 1960. Went to the United States in 1965. Won the international print prize at the 1966 Venice Biennale. Lived in West Germany in 1967. Attracted international attention with his light drawing style resembling graffiti, later made use of photographs. Also active as a novelist.
Ryoji Ikeda
Born in Hokkaido, 1947. Graduated from Musashino Art University in 1969. Exhibited in Miami Graphic Biennale in 1980 and the Biennial of Graphic Art, Ljubljana, in 1981 and 1983. Lived in London for one year, 1981. Transfers photographs to the intaglio plate and prints on Japanese ganpi paper to create images with an aura of deep stillness.
Mitsuo Kano
Born in Tokyo in 1923. Dropped out of middle school because of illness. Later began making intaglio prints. Discovered by the art critic Shuzo Takiguchi and held a one-man show in 1956. In his earliest works, used forms resembling microorganisms. Exhibited in International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Tokyo, in 1957 and Sao Paulo Bienalle in 1959. Won Ljubljana National Museum of Modern Art Prize at the Biennial of Graphic Art, Ljubljana, in 1959. Also made sculpture Recent multi-color works have limpid effects suggesting flames.
Mitsuo Kano
Born in Tokyo in 1923. Dropped out of middle school because of illness. Later began making intaglio prints. Discovered by the art critic Shuzo Takiguchi and held a one-man show in 1956. In his earliest works, used forms resembling microorganisms. Exhibited in International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Tokyo, in 1957 and Sao Paulo Bienalle in 1959. Won Ljubljana National Museum of Modern Art Prize at the Biennial of Graphic Art, Ljubljana, in 1959. Also made sculpture Recent multi-color works have limpid effects suggesting flames.
Sumio Kawakami
Born in Yokohama in 1895. Died in 1972. Started making woodblock prints as a middle school student. Went to the United States in 1917 and traveled extensively, even going to Alaska. Became a middle school English teacher in Utsunomiya in 1921. Attracted attention with his woodblock prints depicting nanban or "southern barbarians," the Westerners who appeared in Japan in the sixteenth century. Became a member of the lapan Creative Print Association in 1927. A member of the first generation of the "creative print" movement in modern Japan, he had a great influence on the next generation of printmakers, for example, Shiko Muna-kata, through his many published books of prints.
Kosuke Kimura
Born in Osaka in 1936. Graduated from the Kyoto City University of Arts in 1959, studying lapanese-style painting. Won award at the British International Print Biennale in 1970 and went on to win prizes at many other international competitions: the international prize at the Biennial of Graphic Art, Ljubljana 1971; the international prize at the Norwegian International Print Biennale, 1972; and prize for excellence at the International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Seoul, 1983. Achieves a sense of freshness with light colors while conveying the anxiety of modern life in his arrangements of symbolic human figures.
Shigeru Kimura
Born in Nara Prefecture in 1929. Graduated from Kobe City School of Foreign Languages in 1953. Studied etching with Shigeru Izumi in 1957. Exhibited in the International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Tokyo, in 1962, 1964, and 1968; the Biennale Internazionale della Graphica d'Arte, Florence, in 1970; and the Biennial of Graphic Art, Ljubljana, in 1973. Makes realistic depictions mostly of trees in delicate and precise etchings.
Noriko Kiyozuka
Born in Fushun, China, in 1940. Graduated from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts in 1968. While studying oil painting with Ryohei Koiso, also studied etching. From 1970 on made intaglio prints with attached pieces of lead and other materials. Exhibited in International Print Biennale, Krakow, in 1972. Won Tokyo National Museum of Modern Art Award at Mainichi Contemporary Art Exhibition of Japan in 1976.
Tetsuro Komai
Born in Tokyo in 1920. Died in 1976. Studied etching with Takeo Nishida in 1934. Graduated from Tokyo School of Foreign Languages in 1943. Won prize/for excellence in Lugano International Print Exhibition in 1952. Went to France in 1954. Studied in the atelier of Bullant at the Academie des Beaux-Arts. Returned to lapan the following year. Proved that the intaglio printing technique, less familiar to the Japanese than woodblock, could be used to achieve poetic, lyrical effects. His influence led to a greater use of etching in lapan.
Akira Kurosaki
Born in Dalian, China, in 1937. Graduated from Kyoto Institute of Technology in 1962. Gold award at International Print Biennale, Krakow, and Minister of Education Award at International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Tokyo, in 1970. Gold award at Biennale Interna-zionale della Graphica d'Arte, Florence. Won first prize at International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Seoul, in 1979. Used the subtle qualities of woodblock prints to create deeply sensual abstract images.
Lee U-Fan
Born in Gyeongsang Nam Do, Korea, in 1936. Left Seoul University before graduating in 1956 and moved to Japan, where he has lived ever since. Exhibited in the Sao Paulo Biennale in 1969 and Documenta 6, Kas-sel, in 1977. One-man shows at Stadtische Kunsthalle, Dusseldorf and the Luisiana Art Gallery, Denmark, in 1978. Won the Kyoto National Museum of Modern Art Prize at the International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Tokyo, in 1979. In addition to arrangements of plain materials, including steel, stone, and glass, makes paintings and prints with deliberately repetitive brushstrokes.
Josaku Maeda
Born in Toyama in 1926. Graduated in Western-style painting from Musashino Art University in 1953. Exhibited in Biennale de Paris in 1959 and Trienniale-lndia, New Delhi, in 1968. Moved from informel paintings to grandly-conceived prints based on mandalas. Has also published numerous studies of mandalas.
Takesada Matsutani
Born in Osaka in 1937. Studied with Jiro Yoshihara. Exhibited with Gutai group in 1960. Went to France in 1966 and based his activities in Paris. Studied etching with Stanley William Hayter in 1967. Won second prize in British International Print Biennale, Bradford, in 1976. Won Grand Prize at Antwerp International Print Exhibition in 1984. Known for experimental works which go beyond the conventional limitations of print-making.
Hiromitsu Morimoto
Born in Yokohama in 1942. Wenttothe United States in 1962. Studied at the Art Students League in 1967 and 1968. Exhibited in the International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Tokyo, in 1979. Chosen to represent lapan in the 1991 Sao Paulo Biennale. Uses highly evocative monochrome photographic images in his prints.
Shiko Munakata
Born in Aomori in 1903. Died in 1975. Began studying woodblock prints with Un'ichi Hiratsuka in Tokyo in 1928. Became involved with the folk art movement of Muneyoshi Yanagi. Won award for excellent work at Lugano International Print Exhibition in 1951. Founded the lapan Print Institute with Kihei Sasajima and others in 1952. Won Grand Prize in the international print section at the 1956 Venice Biennale. Expressed a unique and earthy vitality with traditional woodcut techniques, significantly adding to the international reputation of modern lapanese woodblock prints.
Masanari Murai
Born in Ogaki in 1908. Studied oil painting at Bunka Gakuin (Cultural Institute! in 1925. Went to Paris in 1927. Painted abstract oils in prewar years. Known for his Urbain series. Exhibited oil paintings in the Sao Paulo Biennale in 1951. Began making silk screen prints in 1955. Won Minister of Education Prize in the International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Tokyo, in 1962. A representative of postwar lapanese modernism. His art is characterized by clearly delineated, flat patches of bright color with no superfluous elements.
Tadayoshi Nakabayashi
Born in Tokyo in 1937. Master's degree from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts in 1965. Studied with Tetsuro Komai. Exhibited in International Print Biennale, Krakow, in 1972 and Biennial of Graphic Art, Ljubljana, in 1973. Influenced by Komai, but especially interested in the process of etching the copper plate. His monochrome prints show very delicate forms on the verge of dissolution.
Tetsuya Noda
Born in Kumamoto in 1940. Graduated in painting from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts in 1963. Won the International Grand Prize at International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Tokyo, in 1974; Lodz Museum Prize at International Print Biennale, Krakow, in 1974; and Grand Prize at Biennial of Graphic Art, Ljubljana, in 1977. Known for Diary series with combined woodcut-silkscreen process. Makes ordinary scenes of everyday life into sensitively textured prints using photography.
Tadashige Ono
Born in Tokyo in 1909. Died in 1990. Graduated from Hosei University in 1941. Started making woodblock prints in 1924. Exhibited in the Proletarian Art Exhibition in 1929. Formed Shin-hanga Shudan (new print group) with Yoshio Fujimaki and others and published the print magazine Shinhanga. Thoroughly researched the history of printmaking in the early 1940s. After the war, developed new techniques for woodblock printing based on his extensive knowledge of its history. Taught younger artists at Tokyo National University of Fine Arts.
Gaku Onogi
Born in Tokyo in 1924. Died in 1976. Taught himself to paint in oils in the late 1940s. Began making silkscreen prints in 1965. Exhibited in International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Tokyo, in 1968. Developed style of embossed images on a monotone, usually blue, background . Won purchase prize at the Biennial of Graphic Art, Ljubljana in 1969. Included in contemporary Japa-nese Print Exhibition, Brussels, in 1971.
Toshinobu Onosato
Born in Nagano Prefecture in 1912. Died in 1986. Helped found the Kokushoku Yogaten (Black Western-style Painting Exhibition) group in 1935. Developed his own geometric abstract style by the 1930s. After the war, obtained meticulous, optical-illusion effects in his paintings and also used them in his silk screens, lithographs, and woodblock prints. Showed in international exhibition at the Guggenheim Museum, New York, and the Venice Biennale in 1964. Included in "The New lapanese Painting and Sculpture" at The Museum of Modern Art, New York, in 1965.
Kiyoshi Saito
Born in Fukushima Prefecture in 1907. Raised in Yubari, Hokkaido, and arrived in Tokyo in 1930. At first an oil painter, he began experimenting with woodblock prints in 1935. Became a member of the Zokei Wanga Kyokai (Plastic Art Print Association) at the invitation of Tadashige Ono in 1939. Won the Sao Paulo lapanese Award at the 1951 Sao Paulo Biennale. Spent six months in the United States at the invitation of the U. S. State Department in 1956. Presented woodblock print exhibition at the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D. C. Succeeded in blending the traditional sensibility of woodblock prints with modern formal ideas.
Junichiro Sekino
Born in Aomori in 1914. His etching the first to be accepted in the Imperial Art Exhibition, 1936. Moved to Tokyo in 1939 and studied with Koshiro Onchi. In 1953, founded the Nihon Dohangaka Kyokai (Japan Etchers' Association) with Tetsuro Komai and Chimei Hamada. In the same year exhibited in Sao Paulo Biennale. Won prize for excellence at Biennial of Graphic Art, Ljubljana, in 1961. Stayed in America for one year on a Ford Foundation grant. Started with intaglio printing and applied the same delicate technique to woodblock.
Kuniichi Shima
Born in Tokyo in 1935. Helped organize Shudan-Uan (Group Print) in 1958. Graduated from Tama Art University in 1959. Won first prize in JAF Exhibition in 1972. Won second prize in the International Print Biennale, Krakow, in 1974. Lived in Europe from 1980 to 1981. Expanded the concept of the print with large silk screens combined with other materials and objects. Made "drum paintings" by applying paint to the curved surface of a drum and applied this technique to lithography.
Ushio Shinohara
Born in Tokyo in 1932. Graduated from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts. Exhibited inYomiuri Independent Exhibition in 1958. Formed Neo-Dada Organizers with Shusaku Arakawa, Gempei Akasegawa, and others in 1960. Attracted media attention by carrying out happenings with Mohican hair style. Went to America on Rockefeller Foundation grant in 1969 and from then on based his activities in New York. Famous for motorcycle assemblage series and recent large oil paintings. Also made prints.
Kumi Sugai
Born in Kobe in 1919. Entered Osaka School of Arts in 1933 but left school because of illness. Went to France in 1952. Afterwards based in Paris. Made contract with Craven Gallery in Paris in 1954. Began making lithographs in 1955. Won best foreign artist prize at Sao Paulo Biennale in 1961 and first prize at International Print Biennale, Krakow, in 1966. In early career made roughly painted abstract pictures reminiscent of Zen paintings, but later changed to compositions of clear, geometrical forms.
Yasuichi Tabuchi
Born in Fukuoka in 1921. Graduated in literature from Tokyo University in 1949. Went to France in 1951. Associated with Pierre Alechinsky, Exhibited in Sao Paulo Biennale in 1961. Won prize for excellence at Mainichi Contemporary Art Exhibition of lapan. Influenced by art informel. Made oil paintings with vibrant colors and great vitality. Applied same esthetic to prints.
Jiro Takamatsu
Born in Tokyo in 1936. Graduated in painting from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts in 1958. In 1962 formed High Red Center group with Natsuyuki Naka-nishi and Gempei Akasegawa and participated in a number of street performances. Exhibited in the Ven-cie Biennale in 1968. Won International Grand Prize at International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Tokyo, in 1972. His early prints showed a very conceptual approach using words but recent works are made with random brush strokes and rich and varied colors.
Kojin Toneyama
Born in Tokyo in 1921. Graduated in literature from Waseda University in 1943. Exhibited in Yomiuri Independent Exhibition in 1951 and Sao Paulo Biennale in 1959. Visited Bonampak, Mexico, in 1972 to make rubbings of Mayan art. Received the Aguila Asteca Cultural Award from the Mexican government. His oils and prints emitted the earthy energy he had absorbed from Mayan art.
Toyoshige Watanabe
Born in Tokyo in 1931. Began studying oil painting with Tatsuoki Nanbata in 1956. Began making silk-screen prints and lithographs in 1969. Exhibited in British International Print Biennale, Bradford, in 1974 and in International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Seoul, in 1983. Makes organic abstract images which are quite humorous and seem to have some sort of narrative significance.
Yoko Yamamoto
Born in Saitama Prefecture in 1952. Exhibited in International Print Biennale, Krakow, in 1976. Graduated from Kyoto City University of Arts in 1978. Studied with Hideo Yoshihara. Won prize for excellence at the International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Seoul, in 1983. Makes etchings with intense colors and subtle imagery. Also does illustrations.
Tadanori Yokoo
Born in Hyogo Prefecture in 1936. Graduated from Nishiwaki High School in 1955. Won the Grand Prize in the print division at the Biennale de Paris in 1969. Had one-man shows at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, in 1970, and Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, in 1974. Won Gold Medal at the Warsaw International Poster Biennale in 1974. A representative of the Pop generation in lapan. His work transcended the limitations of graphic design and prints. Currently producing Neo-Expressionist oil paintings.
Hodaka Yoshida
Born in Tokyo in 1926. Won prize for excellent work at Lugano International Print Exhibition in 1962. Began using combined process of woodblock and photo engraving in 1955. Won Far East Grand Prize at the International Biennial Exhibition of prints, Seoul, in 1972. Creates a modern space by inserting clear photographic images into highly-nuanced woodcuts.
Katsuro Yoshida
Born in Saitama Prefecture in 1943. Graduated from Tama Art University in 1968. Debuted as a Mono-ha artist but later made silk screens and etchings using photographs. Won the Far East Grand Prize at the International Exhibition of Prints, Seoul, in 1970. Spent the year 1973 in Europe, mostly in London. At present, making large paintings executed with fingers.
Hideo Yoshihara
Born in Hiroshima in 1931. Participated in Gutai group in 1954. Exhibited in International Biennial Exhibition of Prints, Tokyo, in 1957 and won the Minister of Education Prize in the same exhibition in 1968. Won fourth prize in International Print Biennale, Krakow, in 1972. Makes lithographs and etchings with images of modern women as subject matter, expressing a cool, urban sensuality.
(Compiled by Tsutomu Mizusawa)
List of Works
| No. | Artist | Title | Date | Technique | Size (cm) |
| 1 | Ay-O | WELL WELL WELL | 1974 | silkscreen | 72X51 |
| 2 | Peacock Time | 1977 | silkscreen | 74.3X54.5 | |
| 3 | Shiro Fukazawa | wig | 1973 | silkscreen | 70.4X63 |
| 4 | Sharaku and 1 73-10 | 1973 | silkscreen | 70.3X70.5 | |
| 5 | Yukio Fukazawa | Flag | 1966 | magic ink, aquatint, drypoint | 60X36.4 |
| 6 | Man | 1969 | aquatint, drypoint, etc. | 71.8X44.8 | |
| 7 | Fumiaki Fukita | Tomorrow Will Be Beautiful More than Today | 1968 | woodblock | 60X73 |
| 8 | Exploding Star | 1966 | woodblock | 91.3X60.8 | |
| 9 | Katsura Funakoshi | Study | 1990 | drypoint | 76X56 |
| 10 | Water Blue | 1990 | drypoint | 103.5X82.5 | |
| 11 | Hideo Hagiwara | A Man in Armor No. 21 | 1963 | woodblock | 90.5X59.7 |
| 12 | Work A | 1963 | woodblock | 91X61 | |
| 13 | Chimei Hamada | Catacomb | 1966 | etching, aquatint | 35.2X35 2 |
| 14 | A-re-re... | 1974 | etching, aquatint | 32X19.1 | |
| 15 | Yozo Hamaguchi | 1/4 Lemon | 1976 | mezzotint | 16X16 |
| 16 | 190 plus One | 1975 | mezzotint | 15 5X15.5 | |
| 17 | Takeshi Hara | Strokes 79-23 | 1979 | lithograph | 91X63 |
| 18 | Kiyoshi Hasegawa | Rose with Letter | 1959 | etching | 26X35.5 |
| 19 | loichi Hoshi | Big Tree in Early Spring | 1977 | woodblock | 77X57 |
| 20 | Shoichi Ida | Stones on Paper | 1976 | lithograph | 90X64 |
| 21 | Masuo Ikeda | Death of Venus | 1972 | etching, aquatint, etc. | 31.5X40 |
| 22 | Angelic Words | 1968 | etching, aquatint, etc. | 64X48.5 | |
| 23 | Ryoji Ikeda | Mirage | 1980 | etching, drypoint, aquatint | 45.2X25.8 |
| 24 | Ancestors | 1980 | etching, drypoint, aquatint | 45.2X25.8 | |
| 25 | Mitsuo Kano | Inazuma-dori Series PF-10 | 1977 | lithograph | 62X50 |
| 26 | Inazuma-dori Series PF-11 | 1977 | lithograph | 62X50 | |
| 27 | Sumio Kawakami | Western Manner | 1954 | woodblock | 40X54 |
| 28 | Kosuke Kimura | Present Situation — Existence —A | 1971 | silkscreen, lithograph | 73X104 |
| 29 | Shigeru Kimura | Zelkova Grove | 1976 | etching | 29X22.5 |
| 30 | Noriko Kiyozuka | Scene from a Dream | 1976 | etching | 74X56 |
| 31 | Tetsuro Komai | A Momentary Illusion | 1951 | etching | 17.5X28.5 |
| 32 | People Call It the Final Verse | 1965 | etching | 23X49.5 | |
| 33 | Akira Kurosaki | Forbidden Lovers 5 | 1976 | woodblock, phototype | 80X55 |
| 34 | Camouflaged World 2 | 1977 | woodblock | 80X55 | |
| 35 | Lee U-Fan | Port of Call 3 | 1991 | lithograph | 89X79 |
| 36 | Port of Call 4 | 1991 | lithograph | 89X79 | |
| 37 | losaku Maeda | Scene for Meditation | 1977 | lithograph | 64X47 |
| 38 | Scene for Meditation | 1977 | lithograph | 63.5X45 5 | |
| 39 | Takesada Matsutani | Propagating a Blue Dream — A | 1961 | silkscreen | 73X53 |
| 40 | Hiromitsu Morimoto | Untitled (Blouse) | 1974 | photo drawing | 42X51 |
| 41 | Shiko Munakata | Twin Angels | 1952 | woodblock | 38X37 |
| 42 | Lake Fuse | 1958 | woodblock | 33X41 | |
| 43 | Masanari Murai | Sun and Bird | 1973 | silkscreen | 67X49 |
| 44 | Two Figures | 1964 | lithograph | 65.5X48.5 | |
| 45 | Tadayoshi Nakabayashi | Transposition '82-Ground-V (Spring) | 1982 | etching, aquatint | 57X49 |
| 46 | Transposition 82-Ground-l (Winter) | 1982 | etching, aquatint | 57X49 | |
| 47 | Tetsuya Noda | Diary; Aug. 19th '76 | 1976 | silkscreen, woodblock | 70.5X47 |
| 48 | Diary; Aug. 22nd 68 | 1968 | silkscreen, woodblock | 82X82 | |
| 49 | Tadashige Ono | River in Hiroshima | 1966 | woodblock | 45X28 |
| 50 | Gaku Onogi | Landscape N.E.T. | 1972 | silkscreen | 57X57 |
| 51 | Toshinobu Onosato | Silk 6 | 1967 | silkscreen | 32X41 |
| 52 | Kiyoshi Saito | Affection A | 1975 | woodblock | 44X74.5 |
| 53 | Flame | 1978 | woodblock | 75X46 | |
| 54 | Junichiro Sekino | Takase River | 1975 | woodblock | 65X45 |
| 55 | Kuniichi Shima | SP-C8 | 1987 | silkscreen | 54.6X79 |
| 56 | SP - C, D 74 | 1989 | silkscreen | 48X54 | |
| 57 | Ushio Shinohara | Doll Festival (left) | 1968 | silkscreen | 70X47 |
| 58 | Doll Festival (center) | 1968 | silkscreen | 70X47 | |
| 59 | Doll Festival (right) | 1968 | silkscreen | 70X47 | |
| 60 | Kumi Sugai | Work A | 1980 | silkscreen | 62X46 5 |
| 61 | Guest 1 | 1980 | silkscreen | 57X38 | |
| 62 | Yasuichi Tabuchi | Work | 1971 | lithograph | 40X49.8 |
| 63 | Hill in Spring | 1983 | silkscreen | 64.2X50.7 | |
| 64 | liro Takamatsu | Perspective Bench | 1967 | silkscreen | 59X79 |
| 65 | Kojin Toneyama | Work 69 | 1969 | woodblock | 81.5X54.5 |
| 66 | Toyoshige Watanabe | Three Squares, Sticks and Points (Picnic) | 1980 | silkscreen | 39 5X49.5 |
| 67 | Yoko Yamamoto | Moon Lune | 1985 | etching | 45X60 |
| 68 | Chant Song | 1985 | etching | 68X28 | |
| 69 | Tadanori Yokoo | St. Shambala 4 | 1974 | silkscreen, offset | 85X57 |
| 70 | St. Shambala 9 | 1974 | silkscreen, offset | 85X57 | |
| 71 | Hodaka Yoshida | From My Collection: White House - X.C.T.P | 1980 | woodblock | 39 5X54.5 |
| 72 | San Cristobal de Las Casas, Mexico 8.5.76 | 1980 | woodblock | 39.5X54.5 | |
| 73 | Katsuro Yoshida | Work "10" | 1970 | silkscreen | 75X75 |
| 74 | Hideo Yoshihara | High in the Sky | 1968 | lithograph, etching | 71X101 |
| 75 | Seesaw | 1968 | lithograph | 101X101 |
Japanese Prints
1 Ay-O WELL WELL WELL 1974
3 Shiro Fukazawa wig 1973
5 Yukio Fukazawa Flag 1966
8 Fumiaki Fukita Exploding Star 1966
10 Katsura Funakoshi Water Blue 1990
11 Hideo Hagiwara A Man in Armor No. 21 1963
14 Chimei Hamada A-re-re... 1974
16 Yozo Hamaguchi 190 plus One 1975
17 Takeshi Hara Strokes 79-23 1979
18 Kiyoshi Hasegawa Rose with Letter 1959
19 loichi Hoshi Big Tree in Early Spring 1977
20 Shoichi Ida Stones on Paper 1976
22 Masuo Ikeda Angelic Words 1968
23 Ryoji Ikeda Mirage 1980
26 Mitsuo Kano Inazuma-dori Series PF-11 1977
27 Sumio Kawakami Western Manner 1954
28 Kosuke Kimura Present Situation — Existence —A 1971
29 Shigeru Kimura Zelkova Grove 1976
30 Noriko Kiyozuka Scene from a Dream 1976
31 Tetsuro Komai A Momentary Illusion 1951
33 Akira Kurosaki Forbidden Lovers 5 1976
36 Lee U-Fan Port of Call 4 1991
37 losaku Maeda Scene for Meditation 1977
39 Takesada Matsutani Propagating a Blue Dream — A 1961
40 Hiromitsu Morimoto Untitled (Blouse) 1974
42 Shiko Munakata Lake Fuse 1958
43 Masanari Murai Sun and Bird 1973
46 Tadayoshi Nakabayashi Transposition 82-Ground-l (Winter) 1982
48 Tetsuya Noda Diary; Aug. 22nd 68 1968
49 Tadashige Ono River in Hiroshima 1966
50 Gaku Onogi Landscape N.E.T. 1972
51 Toshinobu Onosato Silk 6 1967
53 Kiyoshi Saito Flame 1978
54 Junichiro Sekino Takase River 1975
56 Kuniichi Shima SP - C, D 74 1989
57-59 Ushio Shinohara Doll Festival 1968
60 Kumi Sugai Work A 1980
63 Yasuichi Tabuchi Hill in Spring 1983
64 liro Takamatsu Perspective Bench 1967
65 Kojin Toneyama Work 69 1969
66 Toyoshige Watanabe Three Squares, Sticks and Points (Picnic) 1980
67 Yoko Yamamoto Moon Lune 1985
70 Tadanori Yokoo St. Shambala 9 1974
71 Hodaka Yoshida From My Collection: White House - X.C.T.P
73 Katsuro Yoshida Work "10" 1970
75 Hideo Yoshihara Seesaw 1968
