UEMAE CHIYU

• Chiyuu Uemae was born in 1920 in Kyoto. After studying Western-style painting on his own, he studied under Jiro Yoshihara, and in 1954, he participated in the formation of the "Gutai Art Association" with 15 young artists from the Kansai region who had joined him under Yoshihara. After the formation of the Gutai Art Association, he continued to produce works that consistently pursued non-figurative (abstract) art. 1990 "Avant-garde Japan: The Gutai Group in the 1950s" (National Museum of Modern Art, Rome); 2012 "Painting the Void, 1949-1962" (Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles); 2013 solo exhibition "The Armory Show" (Pier 92/94, New York) (omitted) Major Collections: Nerima Art Museum; Tokushima Prefectural Museum of Modern Art; Fukui Prefectural Art Museum; Nakanoshima Museum of Art, Osaka.

• relevant artists

  • MORI TOMOAKI

    MORI TOMOAKI, born in Hokkaido, Japan. He graduated from Musashino Art University, Faculty of Art and Design, Department of Oil Painting.

  • AMANO SHIGE

    AMANO SHIGE, Japanese artist, graduated from Osaka University of Arts in 1968 and lived in Paris from 1968 to 1977, where he studied at Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris. In addition to art, he also writes.

  • MOCHIDA SOSHO

    MOCHIDA SOSHO, born in Tokyo, Japan. Contemporary artist, printmaker, and professor emeritus at Osaka University of Arts. His artistic activities are centered in Osaka, where he incorporates a variety of styles, including three-dimensional modeling and art photography. He also produces prints, including recent "branding" works on felt, and taught at Osaka University of Arts (formerly Naniwa University of Arts) from 1960 to early 2000, where he helped establish a printmaking course. Since 1975，he has been exhibiting his works in the "Ge Exhibition," a leading contemporary art group in the Kansai area. He and the other main member MOTONAGA SADAMASA are still active in Japan area and has made a significant contribution to the development of print art in Japan in the Contemporary period. Major collections include: The National Museum of Art, Osaka; Nakanoshima Museum of Contemporary Art, Osaka; Osaka Contemporary Art Center; Museum of Modern Art, Hyogo; Osaka University of Arts Museum; Minneapolis Institute of Arts; Hongik University Museum of Modern Art; and Shanghai Long Museum.

  • KAWABATA MINORU

    KAWABATA MINORU, born in Tokyo in 1911. In 1953, he co-founded the Japan Abstract Art Club with YOSHIHARA JIRO and YAMAGUCHI TAKEO. In 1956, he participated in Exposition Internationale de l'Art Actuel, driven by MICHEL TAPIÉ, alongside artists like DUBUFFET and DE KOONING, representing Japan.In 1958, he moved to New York, and in the following year, he participated in the 2nd Guggenheim International Exhibition, showcasing his artwork "Rhythm - Tea" and receiving the individual Honorable Mention award. Subsequently, he signed with the Betty Parsons Gallery, renowned for promoting prominent post-war abstract expressionist artists like JACKSON POLLOCK and MARK ROTHKO. This marked KAWABATA's entry into the mainstream of New York artists. At the same time, he co-organized exhibitions with Japanese artists who had also moved to the United States, such as KUSAMA YAYOI and OKADA KENZO. In 1962, he exhibited six works at the 31st Venice Biennale. In 1974, he held a solo exhibition at the Everson Museum of Art in New York, followed by a large-scale exhibition at the Kanagawa Prefectural Museum of Modern Art the following year. He continued to create his work in both Japan and the United States, establishing himself as one of the representative Japanese artists of the post-World War II era. His artistic style began with abstract expressionism in the 1950s. Shortly after moving to the United States, he awakened to calligraphic techniques, resulting in unique brushwork and the incorporation of multiple colors into his works. This showcased his exploration of a new spiritual realm through art. Throughout his career, he consistently worked to crystallize his own psychological experiences into visual elements on canvas. His rich use of color, emerging forms, and striking contrasts left a highly emotional impression, expressing his unique inner world through abstract colors.

  • SHINODA MORIO

    SHINODA MORIO, a sculptor born in Meguro, Tokyo, is known for his artistic philosophy of TC (Tension and Compression). He employs tense steel wires as structures in his works, allowing parts of the artwork to float and suspend in the air. His creative technique involves creating tension using geometric structures and metallic materials. He remains active in the forefront of contemporary art. The TC philosophy originated from the architectural theories of Buckminster Fuller in 1958, and Shinozaki's unique and original expression has garnered international acclaim. His exhibited works at the Venice Biennale in 1966 received high praise on the international stage.

  • 加藤文彥

  • TAKASAKI MOTONAO

    TAKASAKI MOTONAO, Japanese artist. He won the Newcomer's Prize at the 4th Modern Art Association Exhibition in 1954. Sympathising with the works of YOSHIHARA JIRO, SHIRAGA KAZUO and MOTONAGA SADAMASA, he became a member of the Gutai Art Association in 1966 and participated until its dissolution in 1972. Major collections: The National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto, Nakanoshima Museum of Art, Osaka, Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art.

  • MORIYA FUMIO

    MORIYA FUMIO (born in 1938 in Ehime, Japan), is a member of the Action Art Association and former professor at Osaka University of Arts. As a central figure in the Kansai-based contemporary art group "Ge," he has made significant contributions to both avant-garde art and art education in Japan. From the 1960s through the early 1970s, Moriya focused on the human body as a central theme, exploring figurative expression through the contrast between organic flesh and inorganic structures. His use of spray techniques brought together vitality and coldness, movement and stillness—establishing a unique visual language charged with tension. A major turning point came in 1975, when he traveled to the United States as a cultural exchange artist with the Overseas International Friendship Society (O.I.F.S.). After this experience, his work shifted decisively toward abstraction, concentrating on the fundamental elements of painting: line, surface, and color fields. In the 1980s, he developed his Works series using scratch techniques, and his Traces series using irregularly shaped panels. Through repeated and accumulated lines, Moriya inscribed layers of memory and the passage of time onto his canvases. From the 1990s onward, he produced the Lines series, composed of systematically arranged rod- or bone-like forms, and the Shrines series, inspired by the architectural structures of Korean tombs and mausoleums. These works fuse geometric forms with folkloric symbols, constructing visual spaces where the individual and collective, past and present, intersect. Within postwar Japanese art, Moriya represents an embodiment of the "aesthetics of matter, action, and memory." His work is defined by its quiet yet intense tension, and he has opened new horizons within the lineage of Kansai avant-garde art. Beyond regional boundaries, his practice stands as essential testimony to the diversity of postwar Japanese art.