Yuki Iiyama (飯山 由貴, Iiyama Yuki, b. 1988) is a Japanese contemporary artist and lecturer at Tama Art University. Iiyama…Yuki Iiyama (飯山 由貴, Iiyama Yuki, b. 1988) is a Japanese contemporary artist and lecturer at Tama Art University. Iiyama explores the themes of social stigma, representation and the interaction of the individual with society, through archival materials, video works, installations and community workshops.
Ayano Sudo (須藤絢乃; born 1986) is a Japanese contemporary artist and photographer. She won the 2014 Canon New Cosmos…Ayano Sudo (須藤絢乃; born 1986) is a Japanese contemporary artist and photographer. She won the 2014 Canon New Cosmos Photography Competition and photographs professionally for Japanese magazines such as Spoon and FREECELL. Her works have been shown domestically in Japan and internationally and are included in the collections of museums such as the Tokyo Photographic Art Museum and the George Eastman Museum (Rochester, New York).
Noritaka Tatehana (born 1985 in Tokyo, Japan) is a Japanese shoe designer born into a family that ran a public…Noritaka Tatehana (born 1985 in Tokyo, Japan) is a Japanese shoe designer born into a family that ran a public bathhouse. He studied fine arts, Japanese craft, dyeing, and weaving at the Tokyo University of the Arts. Tatehana has created clothing, including kimono and shoes, and many of his designs are held in the public collections of museums such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Tatehana handcrafts each step of the manufacturing process of his shoes, all of which are collection pieces. His futuristic shoes, which re-think the notion of "high heels", are unique in both decoration and style, as they are often heel-less platform shoes. His shoes come in a wide variety of colours and patterns, from black to silver, and from fiery red to gold. Tatehana's shoes were included in the V&A Shoes: Pleasure and Pain exhibition in 2015–16. In October and November 2019, the Portland Japanese Garden is showing Tatehana's shoes and other work in his first US exhibition.
Erina Matsui (松井 えり菜, Matsui Erina; born January 8, 1984) is a Japanese contemporary artist. She is known for her…Erina Matsui (松井 えり菜, Matsui Erina; born January 8, 1984) is a Japanese contemporary artist. She is known for her surreal self-portraits, mostly done as oil paintings. Her work has been praised for its jarring visual impact as it defies normal representations of childhood being cute and innocent.
Aki Inomata (あき いのまた Inomata Aki, born 1983) is a Japanese multidisciplinary contemporary artist and designer based in…Aki Inomata (あき いのまた Inomata Aki, born 1983) is a Japanese multidisciplinary contemporary artist and designer based in Tokyo. Her work addresses identity and displacement, and questions societal boundaries between humans versus animals and the natural versus man-made worlds. Much of her artistic practice aims at creating collaborative interspecies relationships through such contemporary modeling technologies as 3-D scanning and printing techniques. Inomata's cross-disciplinary Bio Art projects complicate the notion of production while proposing a new awareness of human and nonhuman ecologies, as she states: "The concept of my works is to get people to perceive the modes of life of various living creatures by experience a kind of empathy toward them."
Tets Ohnari (大成哲, Tets Ohnari; * 30 June 1980, Tokyo) is a Japanese sculptor and contemporary artist living and working…Tets Ohnari (大成哲, Tets Ohnari; * 30 June 1980, Tokyo) is a Japanese sculptor and contemporary artist living and working in both, Tokyo and Prague (Czech Republic).
Tetsuya Noguchi (野口哲哉, Noguchi Tetsuya; born 1980 in Takamatsu, Kagawa Prefecture, Japan) is a Japanese artist known…Tetsuya Noguchi (野口哲哉, Noguchi Tetsuya; born 1980 in Takamatsu, Kagawa Prefecture, Japan) is a Japanese artist known for his images of samurai in modern everyday or comical situations.
Asami Kiyokawa (Japanese: 清川 あさみ) is an embroidery artist from Japan who creates colorful designs over photographs…Asami Kiyokawa (Japanese: 清川 あさみ) is an embroidery artist from Japan who creates colorful designs over photographs using a needle and thread. She has collaborated with a wide variety of celebrities in Japan including rock star Miyavi, musical group AKB48, poet Shuntaro Tanikawa and footballer Atsuto Uchida. In 2012 her exhibition in Omotesando Hills attracted a crowd of 55,000 people.
Carolina Ceca FRSA (born August 25, 1979) is a Spanish artist, art historian and art writer based in Tokyo, Japan. She…Carolina Ceca FRSA (born August 25, 1979) is a Spanish artist, art historian and art writer based in Tokyo, Japan. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of the Arts. Her art has been presented in group and solo exhibitions throughout Europe and Japan. She has been featured on TV, radio, newspapers and magazines. Ceca has a degree in Art History from the University of Salamanca in Spain, where she completed her postgraduate studies on Contemporary Art. Also, she commenced a degree in Fine Arts and Asian studies before travelling to Japan in 2005 to conduct several fields of research at Ferris University, Yokohama. Between 2005 and 2010, she worked and resided in Japan, Spain, Morocco and Italy. In 2011, after the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, she returned to Tokyo, where she spends most of her time creating her artworks, writing, giving lectures and conducting seminars. In her artworks, she uses numerous types of natural materials, including ashes, Japanese washi paper and organdy. Ceca has confirmed that she was deeply influenced by Dondoro (Japanese performer) during her first year in Japan, also by the Japanese dance movement Ankoku Butoh.
Takashi Arai (born June 5, 1978) is a Japanese photographer/visual artist who is well known for his unique practice in…Takashi Arai (born June 5, 1978) is a Japanese photographer/visual artist who is well known for his unique practice in contemporary daguerreotype. He is based in Kawasaki & Tono, Japan.
Tomokazu Matsuyama (松山智一 Matsuyama Tomokazu, born April 30, 1976, in Takayama, Gifu, Japan) is a Japanese contemporary…Tomokazu Matsuyama (松山智一 Matsuyama Tomokazu, born April 30, 1976, in Takayama, Gifu, Japan) is a Japanese contemporary visual artist. Matsuyama lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. Matsuyama is influenced by a variety of subjects, including Japanese art from the Edo and Meiji eras, classical Greek and Roman statuary, French Renaissance painting, postwar contemporary art, and the visual language of global, popular culture as embodied by mass-produced commodities.
Chikako Yamashiro (山城 知佳子, Yamashiro Chikako; born 1976) is a Japanese filmmaker and video artist. Her works in…Chikako Yamashiro (山城 知佳子, Yamashiro Chikako; born 1976) is a Japanese filmmaker and video artist. Her works in photography, video and performance create visual investigations into the history, politics and culture of her homeland Okinawa. Particularly salient are themes related to the terrible civilian casualties incurred in Okinawa during World War II and the on-going troubles and hardships caused by the U.S. military presence in Okinawa. Since 2019 she is associate professor at the Tokyo University of the Arts. Yamashiro has received various awards including the Kurashiki Contemporary Art Biennale (2005), the Asian Art Award (2017), the Zonta prize at the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen (2018), the Asian Art Asia Pacific Breweries Foundation Signature Art Prize (2018), and most recently, the Tokyo Contemporary Art Award (2020-2022). She has also participated in the Okinawa Artist's Exchange Residence Program in the Philippines (2011).
Aya Takano (タカノ綾, Takano Aya; born December 22, 1976) is a Japanese painter, Superflat artist, manga artist, and…Aya Takano (タカノ綾, Takano Aya; born December 22, 1976) is a Japanese painter, Superflat artist, manga artist, and science fiction essayist. Aya Takano is represented by Kaikai Kiki, the artistic production studio created in 2001 by Takashi Murakami.
Koki Tanaka (田中 功起, born December 6, 1975) is a Japanese artist and videographer. He was a visiting scholar at Tokyo…Koki Tanaka (田中 功起, born December 6, 1975) is a Japanese artist and videographer. He was a visiting scholar at Tokyo Zokei University. His work is Minimalist, and primarily focused with finding the unusual in everyday objects and situations.
Takahiro Iwasaki (岩崎 貴宏, Iwasaki Takahiro; born 1975 in Hiroshima) is a Japanese artist and sculptor. He has exhibited…Takahiro Iwasaki (岩崎 貴宏, Iwasaki Takahiro; born 1975 in Hiroshima) is a Japanese artist and sculptor. He has exhibited in international settings including the Seoul Museum of Art in South Korea, the Moscow Museum of Modern Art in Russia, the Queensland Art Gallery in Australia, and the Palais de Tokyo in Paris, France.
Kohei Nawa (born 1975) is a Japanese sculptor and designer. He holds a bachelor's degree from the Kyoto City University…Kohei Nawa (born 1975) is a Japanese sculptor and designer. He holds a bachelor's degree from the Kyoto City University of Arts, and, since 2003, he also holds a Ph.D. in Fine Arts from the Royal College of Art (RCA). Since 1999, Nawa has participated in group exhibitions.
Firoz Mahmud (Bengali: ফিরোজ মাহমুদ) (born September 5, 1974 in Khulna, Bangladesh) is a Bangladeshi visual artist…Firoz Mahmud (Bengali: ফিরোজ মাহমুদ) (born September 5, 1974 in Khulna, Bangladesh) is a Bangladeshi visual artist based in Japan. Mahmud was the first Bangladeshi fellow artist in research at Rijksakademie Van Beeldende Kunsten in Amsterdam. His work has been exhibited at the following biennales: Sharjah Biennale, the first Bangkok Art Biennale, at the Dhaka Art Summit, Setouchi Triennale (BDP), the first Aichi Triennial, the Congo Biennale, the first Lahore Biennale, the Cairo Biennale, the Echigo-Tsumari Triennial, and the Asian Biennale. Mahmud was awarded a guarantee from the Asian Cultural Council (ACC) in New York. Guggenheim Museum's UBS Global Art Initiative and Asia Society invited him to the symposium "Continuous Horizons: Contemporary Art for Asia", No Country: Contemporary Art for South and Southeast Asia Programs. In 2019, Mahmud was nominated for the French COAL prize, which was hosted at Centre Pompidou in Paris.
Aiko Miyanaga (born 1974) is a contemporary Japanese artist known for sculpture and installation works that give visual…Aiko Miyanaga (born 1974) is a contemporary Japanese artist known for sculpture and installation works that give visual form to time by revealing the evidential traces of its passing. Miyanaga has made many works using naphthalene which leads to the disintegration of the work over time.
Yuken Teruya (Japanese: 照屋 勇賢, romanized: Teruya Yūken; born 1973) is a Japanese kirigami artist. He is one of the most…Yuken Teruya (Japanese: 照屋 勇賢, romanized: Teruya Yūken; born 1973) is a Japanese kirigami artist. He is one of the most representative and most successful artists in a generation of Japanese artists born in the 1970s, who came of age amidst the disasters and economic decline of Japan during the 1990s. He lives in New York City and Berlin.
Chiharu Shiota (塩田 千春, Shiota Chiharu) (born 1972) is a Japanese performance and installation artist. Shiota has lived…Chiharu Shiota (塩田 千春, Shiota Chiharu) (born 1972) is a Japanese performance and installation artist. Shiota has lived and worked in Berlin, Germany since 1996. Educated in Japan, Australia, and Germany, Shiota interweaves materiality and the psychic perception of the space to explore ideas around the body and flesh, personal narratives that engage with memory, territory, and alienation. Shiota has exhibited worldwide. She made her debut in Japan at the Yokohama Triennale in 2001 with Memory of Skin and represented Japan in the 56th Venice Biennale in 2015.
Kunio Nakamura (born 1971) is a Japanese artist and the founder of the art gallery "6jigen (6th dimension)" based in…Kunio Nakamura (born 1971) is a Japanese artist and the founder of the art gallery "6jigen (6th dimension)" based in Ogikubo, Tokyo. Currently, Nakamura is a painter and kintsugi artist. He holds workshops and exhibitions in Tokyo, Tohoku and Kumamoto, as well as in the United States. Nakamura co-founded the "Kintsugi Academy" in Los Angeles in 2019, with American painter Makoto Fujimura. He was an art navigator for the Boston Museum of Fine Arts exhibition at the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum in 2022.
Ryota Kuwakubo (born 1971) is a Japanese multimedia artist. Kuwakubo was born in Tochigi Prefecture. In 1998 he…Ryota Kuwakubo (born 1971) is a Japanese multimedia artist. Kuwakubo was born in Tochigi Prefecture. In 1998 he co-produced the project BITMAN with the art unit Maywa Denki. Kuwakubo works with varying mediums, most commonly utilizing digital or electronic aspects, and a typical theme his works center on is contrasting matter. In 2010 Kuwakubo exhibited at Cyber Arts Japan, a special media art exhibition hosted by the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo. A 2011 interactive art piece of his, The Tenth Sentiment, was displayed at the "Ways of Worldmaking" exhibit at the National Museum of Art, Osaka. In The Tenth Sentiment the viewers walk around a room as a model train with an LED light maneuvers along a set of tracks, focusing a light at commonplace objects on the ground which subsequently cast large shadows on the walls of the room. These shadows change from crowds of people, to cityscapes, to tunnels as the piece continues. The Tenth Sentiment was awarded a prize of excellence at the 14th Japan Media Arts Festival which described it as an "attractive work" which avoids the "cliché interactive art works that tend to depend too much on technology", and described by art critic for The Japan Times, Matthew Larking, as "arguably the most attractive work" of the exhibit.
Yoshinori Akazawa (Japanese: ⾚澤 嘉則, romanized: Akazawa Yoshinori, born 1971 -) is a contemporary artist and ceramicist.…Yoshinori Akazawa (Japanese: ⾚澤 嘉則, romanized: Akazawa Yoshinori, born 1971 -) is a contemporary artist and ceramicist. He is known as the 5th generation head of the Akazawa Roseki studio (Akazawa Roseki V), specializing in traditional and contemporary Japanese ceramics.
Hiroko Okada (Japanese: 岡田裕子; born 1970) also known as Okada Hiroko, is a Japanese contemporary artist, known for her…Hiroko Okada (Japanese: 岡田裕子; born 1970) also known as Okada Hiroko, is a Japanese contemporary artist, known for her provocative work that challenges societal standards around the construct of family, love, childbirth, and child-rearing. She works within the mediums of video art, photography, painting, installation, and performance.
Kazu Hiro (born Kazuhiro Tsuji, Japanese: 辻 一弘 Tsuji Kazuhiro; born May 26, 1969) is a Japanese and American special…Kazu Hiro (born Kazuhiro Tsuji, Japanese: 辻 一弘 Tsuji Kazuhiro; born May 26, 1969) is a Japanese and American special make-up effects artist and visual artist. He won the Academy Award for Best Makeup and Hairstyling for the biographical films Darkest Hour (2017) and Bombshell (2019) after earning nominations for the comedies Click (2006) and Norbit (2007). He was additionally nominated for Maestro (2023) and The Smashing Machine (2025).
Yuichi Yokoyama (横山裕一, Yokoyama Yūichi, born April 3, 1967) is a Japanese manga artist, illustrator and painter.…Yuichi Yokoyama (横山裕一, Yokoyama Yūichi, born April 3, 1967) is a Japanese manga artist, illustrator and painter. Trained in oil painting, Yokoyama transitioned from fine art to manga in the mid-1990s, seeking a more suitable medium to explore concepts of time, space, and motion, and had his breakthrough as an artist in the 2000s. His works are characterized by abstract environments, mechanical repetition, minimal dialogue, and immersive use of onomatopoeia, challenging traditional manga conventions and described as "neo manga". Internationally acclaimed, Yokoyama's work has been published and exhibited, among others, in France, the United States and South Korea.
Makoto Aida (会田 誠, Aida Makoto; born 4 October 1965 -) is a Japanese contemporary artist known for his provocative…Makoto Aida (会田 誠, Aida Makoto; born 4 October 1965 -) is a Japanese contemporary artist known for his provocative works of manga, painting, video, photography, sculpture, and installation. Though less well known internationally than Takashi Murakami or Yoshitomo Nara, he is recognized in Japan as one of the preeminent figures of Japanese contemporary art.
Takashi Murakami (村上 隆, Murakami Takashi; born February 1, 1962) is a Japanese contemporary artist. He works in fine…Takashi Murakami (村上 隆, Murakami Takashi; born February 1, 1962) is a Japanese contemporary artist. He works in fine arts (such as painting and sculpture) as well as commercial media (such as fashion, merchandise, and animation) and is known for blurring the line between high and low arts. His work draws from the aesthetic characteristics of the Japanese artistic tradition and the nature of postwar Japanese culture. He has designed covers for several hip hop albums, namely Kanye West's Graduation (2007), Future's eponymous fifth studio album (2017), West and Kid Cudi's Kids See Ghosts (2018), and Juice Wrld's posthumous The Party Never Ends (2024). Murakami is the founder and President of the art trading company Kaikai Kiki Co., Ltd. through which he manages several artists. He was the founder and organizer of the biannual art fair Geisai.
Rumi Matsui (松井るみ, born in Osaka, Japan) is a Japanese set designer and scenographer based in Tokyo. She is the…Rumi Matsui (松井るみ, born in Osaka, Japan) is a Japanese set designer and scenographer based in Tokyo. She is the president of Centreline Associates.
Rei Naito (内藤 礼, Naito Rei; born 1961) is a Japanese artist. Naito's work intersects with minimalism, conceptual art…Rei Naito (内藤 礼, Naito Rei; born 1961) is a Japanese artist. Naito's work intersects with minimalism, conceptual art, and environmental art, exploring the ways in which human existence is shaped, felt, and made evident amidst its natural surroundings. Using organic and found materials and creating immersive environments that interact with sound, light, and atmosphere, Naito's practice takes a strong interest in the intimate, ambient, and often transient encounters that arise between individuals and artworks. Naito represented Japan at the 47th Venice Biennale (1997) and exhibited her installation work One Place on Earth (Chijōni hitsotsu no basho o) in the Japan Pavilion, filling the whole of the interior with the immersive piece. Naito is also known for her collaboration with architect Ryue Nishizawa of SANAA on the Teshima Art Museum, where her work Matrix, the single artwork on display, utilizes organic forms to accentuate the porosity between phases of the natural world. In recent years, Naito has also created smaller-scale sculptural works that derive from human forms, alongside her extant abstraction-based installation practice. Matrix (2010), along with Being Given (2001), are her two permanent installation works, both located within the Seto Island Sea. Smaller scale sculptural works reimagine mundane objects by collaborating and altering exhibition spaces and ambient environments. These works include pillow for the dead (1998) exhibited in the Tokyo National Museum, as well as The joys were greater (2015) shown in Gallery Koyanagi. Her work has been widely exhibited and held in collections at numerous institutions across the globe including the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, the New Museum, the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura & Hayama, the National Gallery Singapore, and the Museum für Moderne Kunst.
Yoshitomo Nara (奈良 美智, Nara Yoshitomo; born 5 December 1959 in Hirosaki, Aomori Prefecture, Japan) is a Japanese…Yoshitomo Nara (奈良 美智, Nara Yoshitomo; born 5 December 1959 in Hirosaki, Aomori Prefecture, Japan) is a Japanese artist. He lives and works in Nasushiobara, Tochigi Prefecture, though his artwork has been exhibited worldwide. Nara has had nearly 40 solo exhibitions since 1984. His art work has been housed at the MoMA and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). His most well-known and repeated subjects are "big-headed girls" with piercing eyes, who one Nara scholar describes as having "childlike expressions [that] resonate with adult emotions, [their] embodiment of kawaii (cuteness) carries a dark humor, and any explicit cultural references are intertwined with personal memories."
Tatsuo Miyajima (宮島 達男, Miyajima Tatsuo; January 16, 1957 –) is a Japanese sculptor and installation artist who lives…Tatsuo Miyajima (宮島 達男, Miyajima Tatsuo; January 16, 1957 –) is a Japanese sculptor and installation artist who lives in Moriya, in Ibaraki prefecture, Japan. His work frequently consists of digital LED counters, and is primarily concerned with the function and significance of time and space, especially within the context of Buddhist influences .
Yoshiaki Watanabe (渡辺好明, Watanabe Yoshiaki) (June 24, 1955 - November 4, 2009) was a Japanese artist, born in Hyōgo…Yoshiaki Watanabe (渡辺好明, Watanabe Yoshiaki) (June 24, 1955 - November 4, 2009) was a Japanese artist, born in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan and best known for his installation work involving candles. He graduated from the undergraduate program at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music (now known as Tokyo University of the Arts) in 1980 with a degree in oil painting, and completed a graduate program in mural work in 1982. From 1985 to 1989 he lived and worked in Germany at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf on a Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst Dienst (German Academic Exchange Service) grant. He returned to Japan in 1989 and began working at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music as an assistant, eventually matriculating to a full professorship. In 1999 he was one of the founding professors of the university's Inter-Media Arts program. He was also one of the main organisers of the Toride Art Project, a community arts project based in Toride City in Ibaraki, Japan. More recently he had done extensive work founding the Ino Artists Village. As an artist, Watanabe had exhibited extensively around the world, completing exhibitions in Turkey and Germany shortly before his death. He died from sudden heart failure on November 4, 2009.
Makoto Saitō (サイトウ マコト; born 21 December 1952) is a Japanese graphic designer, self-described "poster designer", and…Makoto Saitō (サイトウ マコト; born 21 December 1952) is a Japanese graphic designer, self-described "poster designer", and artist. Saitō was born in Fukuoka, Japan. He attended Kokura technical high school and started his career after he graduated. His early work as a printmaker was successful, shown internationally, and is part of the collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Saitō worked from 1974 to 1980 at Nippon Design Center before starting his own firm, Makoto Saitō Design. During his time at Nippon Design, he focused mainly on commercial work, where he wanted the poster to reach as many people as possible. early work as a printmaker was successful, shown internationally, and is part of the collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Saitō worked from 1974 to 1980 at Nippon Design Center before starting his own firm, Makoto Saitō Design. His posters are typified by text-free imagery in dense inks printed on thick, high quality papers. His wide-ranging creative activities explore perpetual theme of “seeing.” That was reflected in an interview with Saitō featured in Spring 2000 issue of Eye magazine, where he was quoted thus: I don't trust words. You can say anything with words. I prefer a visual means of communication because it allows the message to be more direct.Saitō has been a member of the Alliance Graphique Internationale since 1994.
Hiro Yamagata (born 山形 博導 Hiromichi Yamagata, May 30, 1948, in Maihara, in Shiga prefecture, Japan) is a…Hiro Yamagata (born 山形 博導 Hiromichi Yamagata, May 30, 1948, in Maihara, in Shiga prefecture, Japan) is a painter/artist, based in Los Angeles, California. As a silkscreen artist, he is known for his use of vivid colors in his pieces. He is also known for his use of laser and hologram technology recently, and is recognized as a pioneer in the former.
Noriyuki Haraguchi (1946-2020) was a Japanese artist who is known as a leading figure of Mono-ha and Post-mono-ha, with…Noriyuki Haraguchi (1946-2020) was a Japanese artist who is known as a leading figure of Mono-ha and Post-mono-ha, with a precise attention paid to the materials used (often industrial), their spatial arrangement, the relationship with the exhibition space and the processual reach of the artistic practice. His first works reference the aesthetics and materials of militarism and heavy industry. From the 1970s onwards, his work turned to issues related to perception and representation by creating complex conversation between raw and manufactured materials exploring notions of modernity, industrialization, and nature in works with a beguiling formal beauty.
Hitoshi Nomura (Nomura Hitoshi, 野村仁; 1945 – 3 October 2023) was a Japanese contemporary artist. While he initially…Hitoshi Nomura (Nomura Hitoshi, 野村仁; 1945 – 3 October 2023) was a Japanese contemporary artist. While he initially trained in sculpture, his work has developed into ephemeral, process-based and conceptual forms of artworks. The central theme of his work, around which he will experiment throughout his life, is time, and the dynamics of transformation that are linked to it, such as deterioration, evaporation, fusion. In the 1970s, he defined the theme of his work as the attempt to "represent the characteristics of time and space in equal prominence" through his art. The use of photography in his work is decisive, whether this medium is used to document his action or to "sculpt time".
Nobuo Sekine (関根 伸夫, Sekine Nobuo; September 19, 1942 – May 13, 2019) was a Japanese sculptor who resided in both…Nobuo Sekine (関根 伸夫, Sekine Nobuo; September 19, 1942 – May 13, 2019) was a Japanese sculptor who resided in both Tokyo, Japan, and Los Angeles, California. A graduate of Tama Art University, he was one of the key members of Mono-ha, a group of artists who became prominent in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The Mono-ha artists explored the encounter between natural and industrial materials, arranging them or interacting with them in mostly unaltered, ephemeral states. Sekine’s signature materials included earth, water, stone, oilclay, sponge, steel plates, among others. His Phase—Mother Earth, consisting of a hole dug into the ground, 2.7 meters deep and 2.2 meters in diameter, with the excavated earth compacted into a cylinder of exactly the same dimensions, is considered to have initiated the Mono-ha movement. Later credited as the "big bang" of the movement, the work not only attracted the attention of fellow Tama students but also Lee Ufan, who was senior to Sekine and in search of a theoretical framework for new art. This work led to an intense intellectual exchange between Sekine and Lee, involving other Tama students, that served as a foundational theory of Mono-ha, that combined Sekine’s principle of “not making” (tsukuranai koto) and Lee’s idea of “the world as-it-is” (arugamama no sekai), setting a stage for themselves and their peers to embark on a full-fledged exploration of mono (things), which became the name for their movement. Sekine’s own work rapidly progressed from Phase—Mother Earth to Phase-Sponge (1968) and Phase of Nothingness - Oil Clay (1969), with all of these works receiving top awards at major competitions. By 1970, Sekine established himself as a young but rising figure of contemporary art, being invited, along with Shusaku Arakawa, to exhibit in the Japanese pavilion at the Venice Biennale in 1970, by the critic Yoshiaki Tōno. While Arakawa filled the pavilion’s interior, Sekine erected a large-scale outdoor sculpture, Phase of Nothingness. Despite these attentions, the artist departed the Mono-ha practice and established Kankyō Bijutsu Kenkyūjo (Environment Art Studio) in 1973 to focus primarily on public sculpture.
Nobuyoshi Araki (荒木 経惟, Araki Nobuyoshi; born May 25, 1940), professionally known by the mononym Arākii (アラーキー), is a…Nobuyoshi Araki (荒木 経惟, Araki Nobuyoshi; born May 25, 1940), professionally known by the mononym Arākii (アラーキー), is a Japanese photographer and contemporary artist. Known primarily for photography that blends eroticism and bondage in a fine art context, he has published over 500 books.
Tatsuo Kawaguchi (河口龍夫, Kawaguchi Tatsuo, born in 1940, Kobe Japan) is a Japanese multidisciplinary artist, whose…Tatsuo Kawaguchi (河口龍夫, Kawaguchi Tatsuo, born in 1940, Kobe Japan) is a Japanese multidisciplinary artist, whose practice often involves the use of objects and the investigation of materials. After studying painting at Tama Art University, Kawaguchi's diverse oeuvre has included drawing, sculpture, installation, photography, and video. He also co-founded the Group "i", a Kobe-based artistic collective, in 1965. Kawaguchi's early work explored visual perception, principally through the use of objects and mirrors. After 1970, he began using the word "relation" (関係, kankei) in the titles of his works. Kawaguchi seeks to put on display the fragile relationships between the visible and the invisible that create the world around us. The artist intends for his works - which have employed both man-made elements such as lightbulbs or motors, as well as natural elements like stone, wood, seeds and metals - to be perceived of as perpetual works in progress, transforming with time. Environmental anxiety has also informed the development of Kawaguchi's "relation" works. After the Chernobyl disaster, the artist has continuously enveloped various objects, such as seeds, plants, soil, or tools, in lead, a material that protects against radiation. Kawaguchi's work has featured in major international exhibitions and has been associated by art historians with artistic movements such as land art, minimalism and Mono-ha. Kawaguchi has also been identified as belonging to the loosely-affiliated Gainen-ha (Conceptual School), alongside Yutaka Matsuzawa, Jiro Takamatsu, Kazuo Okazaki, Saburo Muraoka (with whom he collaborated in 1973), Isamu Wakabayashi, and Aiko Miyawaki. Kawaguchi was awarded the First Iue Culture Prize for Art and Culture in 1974 as well as the Prize of Japan Arts Foundation in 2008. He is Professor Emeritus at the University of Tsukuba, Institute of Art and Design. He lives and works in Chiba City.
Shigeko Kubota (久保田 成子, Kubota Shigeko) (August 2, 1937 – July 23, 2015) was a Japanese video artist, sculptor and…Shigeko Kubota (久保田 成子, Kubota Shigeko) (August 2, 1937 – July 23, 2015) was a Japanese video artist, sculptor and avant-garde performance artist, who mostly lived in New York City. She was one of the first artists to adopt the portable video camera Sony Portapak in 1970, likening it to a "new paintbrush." Kubota is known for constructing sculptural installations with a strong DIY aesthetic, which include sculptures with embedded monitors playing her original videos. She was a key member and influence on Fluxus, the international group of avant-garde artists centered on George Maciunas, having been involved with the group since witnessing John Cage perform in Tokyo in 1962 and subsequently moving to New York in 1964. She was closely associated with George Brecht, Jackson Mac Low, John Cage, Joe Jones, Nam June Paik, and Ay-O, among other members of Fluxus. Kubota was deemed "Vice Chairman" of the Fluxus Organization by Maciunas. Kubota's video and sculptural works are mainly shown in galleries. Her use of the physical television as a component of her work differs from other video artists of the 1960s who made experimental broadcast programs as a move against the hegemony of major networks. Kubota is known for her contribution to the expansion of the field of video into the field of sculpture and for her works addressing the place of video in art history. Her work explores the influence of the technology, and more specifically the television set, on personal memory and the emotions. Some works for example eulogize while also exploring the presence of the deceased in video footage and recorded images such as her Duchampiana series, the video My Father, and her later works Korean Grave and Winter in Miami which eulogize her husband Nam June Paik. Kubota's sculptures also play with ways in which video footage and sculptures utilize videos to evoke nature, as in her Meta-Marcel, Bird, and Tree series' and in River, and Rock Video: Cherry Blossoms.
Katsuhiko Akasegawa (赤瀬川 克彦, Akasegawa Katsuhiko; March 27, 1937 – October 26, 2014), known by his pseudonym Genpei…Katsuhiko Akasegawa (赤瀬川 克彦, Akasegawa Katsuhiko; March 27, 1937 – October 26, 2014), known by his pseudonym Genpei Akasegawa (赤瀬川 原平, Akasegawa Genpei), was a Japanese artist and writer. In literary works, he also went by Katsuhiko Otsuji (尾辻 克彦, Otsuji Katsuhiko). A member of the influential artist groups Neo-Dada Organizers and Hi-Red Center, Akasegawa went on to maintain a multi-disciplinary practice throughout his career as an individual artist. He is also known for having coined the term and concept of Hyperart Thomasson and for having founded the Rojō Kansatsu Gakkai (路上観察学会; lit. 'Street Observation Society'). Akasegawa has had retrospective exhibitions at the Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art, Chiba City Museum, and Oita City Museum. His work is in the permanent collection at Museum of Modern Art in New York. Artist Nam June Paik has described Akasegawa as "one of those unexportable geniuses of Japan".
Shūsaku Arakawa (荒川 修作, Arakawa Shūsaku; July 6, 1936 – May 19, 2010) was a Japanese conceptual artist and architect.…Shūsaku Arakawa (荒川 修作, Arakawa Shūsaku; July 6, 1936 – May 19, 2010) was a Japanese conceptual artist and architect. He had a personal and artistic partnership with the writer and artist Madeline Gins that spanned more than four decades in which they collaborated on a diverse range of visual mediums, including: painting & printmaking, experimental filmmaking, performance art, and architectural & landscape design. Throughout his life, Arakawa frequently infused his works with philosophical ideas that considered art's intrinsic functions, human perceptions of the physical world, and the language of signs, symbols, and visual meanings. These thematic elements were based on the writings and theories authored by key figures in Science, Philosophy, and Art History: Leonardo da Vinci, Albert Einstein, and Ludwig Wittgenstein. Beginning in the 1960s, Arakawa's work attracted positive responses from the Western art world and led to his representation at numerous esteemed galleries and museums: the Dwan Gallery, Gagosian, The National Museum of Modern Art, Centre Pompidou, David Barnett Gallery, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Museum of Modern Art, New York. Arakawa and Gins founded The Reversible Destiny Foundation in which they designed architectural sites that were aimed toward the longevity of human life expectancy. Moreover, they established the Architectural Body Research Foundation in 1987 as a non-profit research group that stimulated multidisciplinary studies with renowned biologists, neuroscientists, quantum physicists, and medical doctors on the nature of life and death. Arakawa usually referred to himself by his surname only, which eventually came to be more commonly practiced by him during his career in the United States and Europe.
Tadanori Yokoo (横尾 忠則, Yokoo Tadanori; born 27 June 1936) is a Japanese graphic designer, illustrator, printmaker and…Tadanori Yokoo (横尾 忠則, Yokoo Tadanori; born 27 June 1936) is a Japanese graphic designer, illustrator, printmaker and painter. Yokoo's signature style of psychedelia and pastiche engages a wide span of modern visual and cultural phenomena from Japan and around the world.
Jirō Takamatsu (高松 次郎, Takamatsu Jirō; 20 February 1936 – 25 June 1998) was one of the most important postwar Japanese…Jirō Takamatsu (高松 次郎, Takamatsu Jirō; 20 February 1936 – 25 June 1998) was one of the most important postwar Japanese artists. Takamatsu used photography, sculpture, painting, drawing, and performance to fundamentally investigate the philosophical and material conditions of art. Takamatsu's practice was dedicated to the critique of cognition and perception, through the rendering and variation of morphological devices, such as shadow, tautology, appropriation, perceptual and perspective distortion and representation. Takamatsu's conceptual work can be understood through his notions of the Zero Dimension, which renders an object or form to observe its fundamental geometrical components. Takamatsu isolated these smallest constituent elements, asserting that these elements produce reality, or existence. For Takamatsu the elementary particle represents “the ultimate of division” and also “emptiness itself,” like the a line within a painting—there appears to be nothing more beyond the line itself. Yet, Takamatsu's end goal was not to just prove the presence or object-ness of these elements, but rather to use them as a way to challenge and prove the limits of human perception, leading to his fixation on “absence” or the things that are unobservable. The impact of Takamatsu's practice also has to be considered in terms of his contributions to the avant garde art scenes through his individual practice and work with collectives, as well as the legibility of his work in the discourse of conceptual art and thus the broader international art world.
