Tadanori Yokoo
dal 19/10/2001 al 14/1/2002
Segnalato da
Hara Museum of Contemporary Art
19/10/2001
Tadanori Yokoo
Hara Museum, Tokyo
This exhibition, entitled Tadanori Yokoo: DNF Anya Kouro, originated in the paintings that Yokoo made of night scenes in his hometown this past autumn. Most of the works in this exhibition are drawn from the DNF: Anya Kouro series which the artist completed in an incredibly short period of a few months.
Memory, objects, people, thoughts, history, culture--things
lost or on the verge of being lost are the subjects of
Tadanori Yokoo, a leading artist of our time who has
striven since the 1960s to recover these things within
himself. Active in a variety of areas centered on painting,
design and writing, Yokoo has won a wide and enthusiastic following that encompasses all ages
and
nationalities. As a leader in his field and a
constant source
of grand messages, he has had an inestimable
influence
on contemporary culture and society.
This exhibition, entitled Tadanori Yokoo: DNF
Anya Kouro,
originated in the paintings that Yokoo made of
night
scenes in his hometown this past autumn. Most of
the
works in this exhibition are drawn from the DNF:
Anya
Kouro* series which the artist completed in an
incredibly
short period of a few months.
In the novel by Naoya Shiga, A Dark Night's
Passing, the
protagonist's psychological transformation is
depicted with
penetrating realism. Shiga, who developed a
world of the
"self" in his novels through the emphasis of
feelings, may
be compared to Yokoo who once said that it was
his
desire to depict only those things experienced
through his
own body. This faithfulness to feelings and
thoughts
obtained through the medium of one's own flesh
and mind
is a commonality that connects the two men
beyond the
boundaries of time.
In DNF: Anya Kouro, the motif in each work is a
forked
road in the dark, accompanied by a landscape
that is fast
disappearing from the rational, ordered modern
roads of
today. This road stretches into two directions,
dividing
darkness in two, so deep so as to render the
destinations
invisible, filling us with anxiety down to the
soles of our
feet.
This crossroads, this "dark night's passing" of
life, may be
road that all humans must tread, fought with
problems and
uncertainties. At the far end of the road, a
tiny light dimly
flickers. It is at once a signpost that
signifies salvation,
and a light that keeps the darkness at bay. At
other times
it is a blinding light, or a powerful
subjugating force.
This year marks the twentieth anniversary of
Yokoo's
career changeover to painting. Over these years,
he has
created works for a number of series. To the
artist, making
many paintings on the same theme is like
collecting a
large number of the something that he likes.
That is, as he
puts it, the "taking in and accumulation of
feelings within
the body."
Aside from DNF: Anya Kouro, this exhibition also
includes
The Primitive Universe and other more graphical
works that
show off Yokoo's mastery of bold composition and
coloring. There are also a number of special
installations
made up of items from the invaluable "Yoko
Collection,"
which also make reference to the dark within
light. These
include Ascent and Descent, an installation that
consist of
the surfaces of stairwells in the museum covered
with
Yokoo's private collection of "waterfall"
postcards.
As crystallizations of feelings processed by and
overflowing from the artist's own body, the
works in this
exhibition release an energy that fills the
entire space of
the Hara Museum, and each of our bodies, giving
us the
courage to embark on new paths.
*DNF is the abbreviation for "A Dark Night's
Flashing," a
phrase created by the artist from the title of
the novel by
Naoya Shiga, A Dark Night's Passing.
This exhibition is organized by the Hara Museum
of
Contemporary Art, and is sponsored by Japan Arts
Fund,
with support provided by Konica Corporation
(under
application).
Hours: Daily 11:00-17:00, except Wednesday
-20:00;
Closed on Mondays and during winter holidays
(December
28-January 4, 2002).
Open on December 24 and close on 25th.
Admission: Regular 1,000yen / Students 16 and
over
700yen / Under 15 500yen
[Free for Museum members, students through high
school
every 2nd & 4th Saturday and for those 70 and
over.]
Hara Museum of Contemporary Art
Kitashinagawa Shinagawa-ku Tokyo 140-0001
Tel: +81 (03) 3445-0651