SoWAs

art news

YOSHIHARA JIRO

  • YOSHIHARA JIRO is a Japanese abstract painter and businessman. In 1954, he founded the Gutai Art Association, the leading artistic movement in the postwar Kansai region. The following year, he held the first exhibition, and until 1968, he held 21 exhibitions of Gutai art not only in Japan but also in New York and Turin, becoming a part of the international art movement. He often said not to inherit modern paintings or imitate others, but create something that no one has ever done before." His philosophy led to the creation of many artists, including SHIRAGA KAZUO and MOTONAGA SADAMASA. He is best known for his works featuring circles, such as large white circles painted on a black background. Major Collections: National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, The National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto, The National Museum of Art, Osaka, Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art, The Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura & Hayama, Toyama Prefectural Museum of Art and Design, Ohara Museum of Art, Nakanoshima Museum of Art, Osaka

  • relevant artists

    • SUMI YASUO

      SUMI YASUO, Japanese abstract painter, born in Osaka. After graduating from university, he worked as an art instructor at several universities. In 1954, he became acquainted with YOSHIHARA JIRO, and later studied painting from him. In 1955, he joined the Gutai Art Association. Major collections: The National Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art, Roma, Nakanoshima Museum of Art, Osaka.

    • 戶泉惠德

    • 大嶽有一

    • ZAO WOU-KI

      ZAO WOU-KI was a Chinese-French painter, born in Beijing. In his childhood, he studied in Nantong Jiangsu and learned painting. In 1935, he entered Hangzhou Art College and studied under Lin Fengmian. In 1948, he went to France to study and settled in France. The Western contemporary painting style and oil painting color technique of his work was excellent in the artistic expression of traditional Chinese culture, color changes, and brushstrokes, and was called "the representative of modern Western abstract painting". He was a professor at the National School of Decorative Arts in Paris which is known as École des Arts Décoratifs, and was awarded the order of chivalry of France. He held exhibitions in more than 160 locations around the world. He died on April 9, 2013 because of illness at the age of 92.

    • ANDO TADAO

      ANDO TADAO, Japanese architect, born in Osaka, self-taught in architecture. He is a first-class architect and special University Professor Emeritus of the University of Tokyo. He opened his own design studio in 1969. He has produced numerous works in Japan and abroad, including houses, churches, and hotels, mainly using concrete. Row House in Sumiyoshi (1976), Church of Light (1989), Benesse House Museum in Naoshima (1992), The Hundred Step Garden in Awaji (2000), Nakanoshima Children’s Book Forest (2020), etc.

    • MATSUTANI TAKESADA

      MATSUTANI TAKESADA, Japanese contemporary artist, who became a member of Gutai Art Association in 1963. He established the technique of painting the bonded screen in black with pencil, and is active at the forefront of the world with a main section at the Venice Biennale in 2017 and a solo exhibition at the Centre Georges Pompidou in 2019.

    • KAYAMA MATAZO

      KAYAMA MATAZOU, Japanese painter and printmaker. He was born into a traditional artistic family: his grandfather was a Japanese-style painter and his father was a costume designer for Nishijin textiles in Kyoto. After graduating from Tokyo Fine Arts School, he studied under Kyujin Yamamoto and pursued Japanese-style painting. He held his first solo exhibition in 1955 and participated in the Guggenheim International Art Exhibition in 1958. Around this time, he began to exhibit frequently at exhibitions abroad. He became a professor emeritus at Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music.

    • SHIRAGA KAZUO

      SHIRAGA KAZUO, was a leading abstract painter of Japan's postwar avantgarde, distinguished by his original methods and overwhelming physicality. In 1952 he co-founded the Zero Society with Murakami Saburo, Kanayama Akira, and Tanaka Atsuko, and in 1955 joined the Gutai Art Association, led by Yoshihara Jiro, becoming one of its central members. Shiraga is best known for his unprecedented "foot painting" technique, in which he painted on canvases placed on the floor while suspended by ropes, using his feet to manipulate paint. This radical method fused corporeality, movement, and improvisation with painting, generating works of extraordinary dynamism and energy. While resonating with contemporaneous Western movements such as Art Informel and Action Painting, his work also embodied Eastern spirituality and the Zen concept of "mushin" (no-mind), establishing a unique artistic world. Major collections: M+ Museum, Hong Kong; The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York; Centre Pompidou, Paris; The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo; The National Museum of Art, Osaka; Nakanoshima Museum of Art, Osaka; and Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art.

The works at the gallery

The works at the auction house

Contact us

  • Inquiries about Auctions
  • Inquiries about galleries
  • Inquiries about art museums
  • Inquiries about art books and reference materials
  • Inquiries about art news
    • Others
Contact