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ASO SABURO
April 29－June 12, 2011
Aso Saburo (1913-2000) painted himself and his family with insightful awareness as war threatened life and freedom. In 1943, Aso formed a group, “Shinjin Ga-kai (New Painters’ Group),” with Ai-Mitsu and Matsumoto Shunsuke to function as a place where works could be openly presented. During the post-war period, as if in opposition to social contradictions and forces depriving humanity in the shadow of Japan’s revival and rapidly growing economy, Aso pursued the depressed cityscape and its people, dark spaces and human bodies struggling in conflict. A decade after Aso’s death, his paintings confront time and society and elucidate the powerful, irreplaceable quality of human existence in the world, providing us with many insights. |
Aso Saburo, Man, 1940
Oil on canvas, The Museum of Modern Art, Ibaraki |
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MUNAKATA SHIKO
July 9 - September 4, 2011
This exhibition is a retrospective of the achievements of Munakata Shiko (1903-1975), who admired Vincent van Gogh and decided to pursue a life of art. Munakata mastered a unique form of woodblock printmaking, "hanga," and became internationally respected. His creative vitality remained strong throughout his entire lifetime. Presenting 70 sets of work (300 items in total), the exhibition includes various hanga prints, such as the 26m-long "Earth-From Mankind to the Gods Heaven-From the Gods to Mankind," and artworks related to Buddhism, ancient mythology and his hometown in the Tohoku region. Other types of art, such as original Yamato-e paintings, calligraphy and ceramics are included to provide a comprehensive view of Munakata's artistic activity.
The exhibition Masterpieces of French Paintings from The State Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow has been cancelled. |
Shiko Munakata, Sarasvati, Goddess of the Arts, 1965, printed in 1974
Woodprint, color on paper, Munakata Museum |
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SHIMADA SHOZO: A Retrospective
September 16－October 30, 2011
With a painting style emphasizing human emotion within modern forms, Shimada Shozo (1933-) appeared in social art circles at an early age. He discovered his artistic experiment, “translating Cubism into Japanese language (form)” during his studies in Europe starting in 1967. Shimada’s unique human figures, “katachibito” and their integration into geometrically structured everyday scenery became his focus. While the influential abstract painting movement from overseas was in prominence, Shimada continued to paint figures in search of new painting possibilities. This exhibition will retrospectively follow the path of Shimada, including his most important works in total of about 120 works, who is a representative for figurative painting. |
Shozo Shimada, Freeing Bird, 1983
Oil on canvas, Yokosuka Museum of Art |
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