CONNECTIONS – MEMORIAL EXHIBITION: NOBUO SEKINE & SHANGHAI EXPO PRINTS

关根 伸夫| Nobuo SEKINE (b.1942)

1942  Born in Saitama prefecture, Japan

1968  Obtained B.F.A of Tama Art University, where he studied under the artists Saito Yoshishige and Jiro Takamatsu. Since graduation, he has worked actively as the central figure of Mono-ha in international exhibitions.

Mono-ha School, a Japanese art school of the late 1960s and early 1970s, emphasized the relationship between objects and space, and the extreme restraint of “plastic art”.

1968  “Phase-Mother Earth” created by the artistis widely considered to be the origin of the Mono-ha movement, and it was also one of the most representative Japanese art creations at that time, and had a significant influence on the future development of land art, installation, and minimalist art in Asia.

Nobuo Sekine’s work is deeply inspired by Zen philosophy, combining the theory of topology with artistic experimentation. By disposing matters to continuous change in form while retaining its natural quality, he seeks to unveil the intrinsic quality of matters through varying perspectives, which in turn questions interrelation between the matters and audience as the change takes place. His works include land art, installations of natural and industrial materials, and graphic creations that explore the medium of painting.

Nobuo Sekine represented Japan in the 35th Venice Biennale in 1970 with the series of “Phase of Nothingness”, and later participated in biennales held in France, Japan and South Korea. In 2001, in recognition of Nobuo Sekine’s contribution to Japanese modern art, Tate Modern organized his works into the exhibition “Century City”.

小清水 渐｜Susumu KOSHIMIZU（b.1944）

Susumu KOSHIMIZU was born in 1944 in Ehime Prefecture, Japan. He graduated from Sculpture Department, Tama Art University and later became one of the key members of Mono-ha, a group of artists who turned prominent in the late 1960s and 1970s. From early on, Koshimizu’s investigation of material and space resulted in some of Mono-ha’s most definitive artworks. Koshimizu’s installations and sculptures during the 1960s and 1970s focused on the qualities inherent to but not visible in an object. He shows concern for the materiality of objects—a desire to expose the fundamentals of sculpture, often revealed through juxtaposition. At the beginning of the 1970s, Koshimizu started to explore specifically the structure of surfaces.

The artist’s important exhibitions include Mono-ha, Fondazione Mudima (Milan, Italy, 2015); Parallel Views: Italian and Japanese Art from the 1950s, 60s, and 70s, The Warehouse, (Dallas, Texas, U.S.A., 2013); Century City Art and Culture in the Modern Metropolis, Tate Modern (London, UK, 2001); Matter and Perception: 1970 Mono-ha and the Search for Fundamentals, The Museum of Fine Arts, Gifu, Japan, from 17 Feb. to 26 March, 1995 (traveled to Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art, from Aug. 19th to Sep. 24th; Kitakyushu Municipal Museum of Art, from Oct. 7 to Dec. 17 and The Museum of Modern Art, Saitama. In 1996, this exhibition traveled to Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Saint-Etienne, France. Japanese Art after 1945: Scream Against the Sky, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York (traveled to San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, U.S.A.) (1994); 17th Sao Paolo Biennale (Sao Paolo, Brazil, 1983); 37th & 39th Venice Biennale, Venice, Italy (1976 & 1980), and 7th Paris Youth Biennale (Paris, France, 1971).

横尾 忠则｜Tadanori YOKOO (b.1936)

Born 1936 in Nishiwaki, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. Lives and works in Tokyo. Tadanori Yokoo is one of Japan’s most well-known artists, who began working with painting in 1966. In parallel, Yokoo’s early screenprints combined photographs with the influence of traditional Japanese ukiyo-e (woodblock prints) and pop art’s flat colours and overtly sexual content. Awarded the Grand Prize for Prints at the 6th Paris Youth Biennale in 1969, Yokoo experimented with collage and illustration, re-appropriating found photographs and images, which reflected on the rapid changes and Westernisation of Japan post-war society. His work became influenced by mysticism following his trip to India in the 1970s, resulting in posters with eclectic imagery sharing the aesthetics of the underground psychedelic magazines of the time.

笛田 亚希 | Aki FUEDA (b.1974)

Aki FUEDA received her master’s degree in Oil Painting from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music in 2001. She is emotionally attached to her hometown, Musashino, Tokyo, and has created a large number of works related to her hometown. Among them, Hanako, an elephant in Kichijoji Inokashira Nature Park, has been exhibited many times over the years in the form of paintings and three-dimensional works, and after Hanako’s death, a bronze statue of Hanako, created by Aki FUEDA, was placed at JR Kichijoji Station. She has a deep affection for animals, insects, plants, and other delicate or robust creatures, and her works, ranging from oil paintings (oils, inks, and watercolours), sculptures, and installations, fully demonstrate her high level of skill.

井口 真吾｜Shingo IGUCHI (b.1957)

1957 Born in Hiroshima, Japan

1983 Debuted in the comic magazine GARO

1984 Published the manga “Z CHAN”

In 1984, a project called “Z PLAN” was launched with the aim of exploring the possibilities of virtual worlds. The world of the little boy “Z CHAN”, symbolized by a magic hat and eye mask, was the theme, presenting a unique world filled with philosophy, hints, and mysteries through comics, books, novels, poetry, illustrations, paintings, performances, music, and other means. Most of his artistic works interfere with the current era in the world of “Z CHAN”, breaking down and reconstructing the elements of the manga “Z CHAN” into a simple artistic style.

The word ‘Z’ on the hat implies multiple metaphors, and Zen’s Z is also one of them. The simple black and white lines form the basis of spatial expression, presenting an aesthetic consciousness full of Zen meaning, reminiscent of the dialogue of “Zen Q&A” (“ぜんもんどう”).

The secondary character “Vanrogh Bear” appearing in the picture book “Vanrogh’s Honey” under the worldview of “Z CHAN” is highly popular among clothing and T-shirt manufacturers, and is said to have been inspired by the teachings of “Ten Bulls” that interpret Zen through images and poetry.

After 2000，the artist mainly active in the field of contemporary art. In 2021, He held his solo exhibition in Building 2 of Akitakata Municipal Yachiyonooka Museum of Art, Hiroshima.The second solo exhibition “Z 2022m” held in Kamakura can be said to be the current spatiotemporal coordinates of the Z CHAN world. In an increasingly chaotic era, what should we believe and pursue? The story will continue……

孙 良 | SUN Liang (b.1957)

1957  Born in Hangzhou, China

1973  Assigned to enter the Shanghai Jade Carving Factory, under the tutelage of Xiao Chunhai, a national master of arts and crafts.

1982  Graduated from the Department of Fine Arts and Design, Shanghai Institute of Light Industry, and later taught at the Academy of Fine Arts, Shanghai University.

1988  Completed the performance work “The Last Supper” at the Shanghai Art Museum with Li Shan, Zhou Changjiang, Zhang Jianjun, Li Xianting, etc.

1989 Participated in the “China Modern Art Exhibition”, the historic event of “85 New Wave Movement Curtain Call”.

1992  Participated in the K-18 International Art Exhibition in Kassel, Germany

1993  Went to Italy to participate in the 45th Venice Biennale.

1998  Left Shanghai University and entered the School of Design, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology to teach until now

Sun Liang took pantheism as the theoretical cornerstone, and with the help of such as Jingwei in Chinese mythology, Icarus in Greek mythology, Ophelia and other archetypes in multicultural backgrounds, interweaving self-experience and imagination to create dream-like characters, death marriage, seductive chess games, blood-devouring terror, and grim laughter will all be the themes he depicts. Regarding the choice of color, Sun Liang does not rely on natural giving, but freely imagines, creating a calm and profound exotic time-space. His unique painting language breeds a series of changes, forming a creative system that can grow indefinitely.

Sun Liang was one of the first leading figures to enter Chinese contemporary art. In the long-term exploration, the artist focuses on a unique painting language, attracting galleries and museums around the world to hold exhibitions for him. Since 2006, Sun Liang’s works have been active in the auction market, and the auction at Hosane has the best performance. Sun Liang’s works are collected by Guangdong Art Museum, Today Art Museum, Shanghai Art Museum, Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Hong Kong University Art Museum, Shanghai Zhangjiang Museum of Contemporary Art, Shanghai Long Museum, etc.