Yoshitomo Nara
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is a Japanese artist. He lives and works in Nasushiobara,
Tochigi Prefecture is a landlocked Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Tochigi Prefecture has a population of 1,897,649 (1 June 2023) and has a geographic area of 6,408 Square kilometre, km2 (2,474 Square mile, sq mi ...
, 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 The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...
and the
Los Angeles County Museum of Art The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) is an art museum located on Wilshire Boulevard in the Miracle Mile vicinity of Los Angeles. LACMA is on Museum Row, adjacent to the La Brea Tar Pits (George C. Page Museum). LACMA was founded in 1961 ...
(LACMA). His most well-known and repeated subjects are "big-headed girls" with piercing eyes, who one Nara scholar describes as having "childlike expressions
hat A hat is a Headgear, head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorpor ...
resonate with adult emotions,
heir Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Offi ...
embodiment of
kawaii ''Kawaii'' is a Japanese cultural phenomenon which emphasizes cuteness, childlike innocence, charm, and simplicity. ''Kawaii'' culture began to flourish in the 1970s, driven by youth culture and the rise of cute characters in manga and anime ...
(cuteness) carries a dark humor, and any explicit cultural references are intertwined with personal memories."


Early life and education

Nara grew up in
Aomori Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan in the Tōhoku region. The prefecture's capital, largest city, and namesake is the city of Aomori (city), Aomori. Aomori is the northernmost prefecture on Japan's main island, Honshu, and is border ...
, Japan, about 300 miles north of where he lives now in
Tochigi Prefecture is a landlocked Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Tochigi Prefecture has a population of 1,897,649 (1 June 2023) and has a geographic area of 6,408 Square kilometre, km2 (2,474 Square mile, sq mi ...
. His exposure to Western music on the American military radio station Far East Network in Honshu influenced his artistic imagination at an early age. He would later provide cover art for bands including
Shonen Knife Shonen Knife is a Japanese pop-punk band formed in Osaka in 1981. Influenced by 1960s girl groups, pop bands, the Beach Boys, and early punk rock bands such as the Ramones, the band crafts stripped-down songs with simple yet unconventional ...
,
R.E.M. R.E.M. was an American alternative rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe, who were students at the University of Georgia. One of the fir ...
, and Bloodthirsty Butchers. He received his B.F.A. (1985) and an M.F.A. (1987) from the Aichi Prefectural University of Fine Arts and Music. Between 1988 and 1993, Nara studied at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf, in
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
.


Artwork

"Nara first came to the fore of the art world during Japan's Pop art movement in the 1990s. The subject matter of his sculptures and paintings is deceptively simple: most works depict one seemingly innocuous subject (often pastel-hued children and animals drawn with confident, cartoonish lines) with little or no background. But these children, who appear at first to be cute and even vulnerable, sometimes brandish weapons like knives and saws. Their wide eyes often hold accusatory looks that could be sleepy-eyed irritation at being awoken from a nap—or that could be undiluted expressions of hate." Nara, however, does not see his weapon-wielding subjects as aggressors. "Look at them, they he weaponsare so small, like toys. Do you think they could fight with those?" he says. "I don't think so. Rather, I kind of see the children among other, bigger, bad people all around them, who are holding bigger knives..." Lauded by art critics, Nara's bizarrely intriguing works have gained him a cult following around the world. Large original paintings regularly sell for millions of dollars. In June, 2005, Nara's artwork was featured in the album titled "Suspended Animation" by experimental band Fantômas. Other commercial products (including videos, books, magazines, catalogues and monographs) have been dedicated to Nara's work. Recently, a two-volume catalogue raisonné of all his sculptures, paintings, and drawings was completed. In 2010, the
Asia Society The Asia Society is a 501(c)(3) organization that focuses on educating the world about Asia. It has several centers in the United States (Manhattan, Washington, D.C., Houston, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle) and around the world (Hong Ko ...
showed ''Yoshitomo Nara: Nobody's Fool'' the first major New York exhibition of his work. Other major retrospectives include: "I Don't Mind If You Forget Me", which toured Japan between 2001 and 2002; and "Yoshitomo Nara: Nothing Ever Happens," which traveled the United States from 2003 to 2005. One of his exhibited works is now part of a window of the
Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art (also known simply as (the) Baltic, stylised as BALTIC) is a centre for contemporary art located on the south bank of the River Tyne in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, England. It hosts a frequently changing variety ...
in
Gateshead Gateshead () is a town in the Gateshead Metropolitan Borough of Tyne and Wear, England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank. The town's attractions include the twenty metre tall Angel of the North sculpture on the town's southern outskirts, ...
, England. In 2019, Nara's installation art ''Not Everything but/ Green House'' (2009) was sold for a new record price of HK$40.12m (US$5.12m) at Poly Auction Hong Kong. However, this record only lasted for a few hours. ''Knife Behind Back'' (2000), a large-scale painting by Nara, just sold at
Sotheby's Sotheby's ( ) is a British-founded multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine art, fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, an ...
Contemporary Art Contemporary art is a term used to describe the art of today, generally referring to art produced from the 1970s onwards. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a ...
Evening Sale in Hong Kong for HK$195.7m (US$25m), nearly five times its record. The new record is also a milestone for Nara as he becomes the most expensive Japanese artist. ''Can’t Wait ‘til the Night Comes'' was sold for HK$92.9m at the same year. In April 2021, the painting Frog Girl was sold in
Sotheby's Sotheby's ( ) is a British-founded multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine art, fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, an ...
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
Spring auction for US$12.5 million.


Influences

Though Nara claims to have never said that he was influenced by
manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...
, the imagery of
manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...
and
anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...
of his 1960s childhood is often cited when discussing Nara's stylized, large-eyed figures. Nara subverts these images, however, by infusing his works with horror-like imagery. This juxtaposition of human evil with the innocent child may be a reaction to Japan's rigid social conventions. Nara cites his musical education as a foundational influence for his art. The
punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...
music of Nara's youth has also influenced his work. Nara's upbringing in post-
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
Japan profoundly affected his mindset and, subsequently, his artwork as well. He grew up in a time when Japan was experiencing an inundation of Western pop culture;
comic books A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...
,
Warner Bros Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American film studio, filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios Burbank, Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and th ...
and
Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney ( ; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer, voice actor, and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the Golden age of American animation, American animation industry, he introduced several develop ...
animation, and Western rock music are just a few examples. Additionally, Nara was raised in the isolated countryside as a latchkey child of working-class parents, so he was often left alone with little to do but explore his young imagination. The fiercely independent subjects that populate so much of his artwork may be a reaction to Nara's own largely independent childhood.


Recent work

Nara exhibited work in New York at the
Pace Gallery The Pace Gallery is a contemporary and modern art gallery with 9 locations worldwide. It was founded in Boston by Arne Glimcher in 1960. His son, Marc Glimcher, is now president and CEO. Pace Gallery operates in New York, London, Hong Kong, ...
in May–April 2017. It was his first exhibition in New York since 2013. Entitled ''Thinker'', the pieces exhibited represent a shift towards a more meditative body of work. Of this shift, Nara said, "In the past I would have an image that I wanted to create, and I would just do it. I would just get it finished. Now I take my time and work slowly and build up all these layers to find the best way. Just like you cook so that you know it’s going to be the most delicious, you find a way to make your art the best it can be." In July 2017, The Toyota Municipal Museum of Art held a career retrospective of the artist's work, called ''for better or worse''. A retrospective of his work, including 100 pieces from 36 years, was exhibited at the
Los Angeles County Museum of Art The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) is an art museum located on Wilshire Boulevard in the Miracle Mile vicinity of Los Angeles. LACMA is on Museum Row, adjacent to the La Brea Tar Pits (George C. Page Museum). LACMA was founded in 1961 ...
from April 1, 2021, to January 2, 2022.


Selected exhibitions

*2024 - „Yoshitomo Nara“
Museum Frieder Burda
*2024 - „Yoshitomo Nara“ - Guggenheim Bilbao *2023 - "Yoshitomo Nara: All my little words" - ALBERTINA MODERN, Vienna * 2018 - "Yoshitomo Nara: Ceramic Works and ..." - Pace, Hong Kong * 2018 - "Drawings: 1988-2018 Last 30 Years" - Kaikai Kiki, Tokyo * 2017 - "for better or worse" - Toyota Municipal Museum of Art, Aichi * 2016 - "Yoshitomo Nara: New Works" - Stephen Friedman Gallery, London * 2015 - "Shallow Puddles" - Blum and Poe, Tokyo * 2014 - "Yoshitomo Nara" - Blum and Poe, Los Angeles * 2009 - "15TH ANNIVERSARY INAUGURAL EXHIBITION" - Blum and Poe, Los Angeles * 2008 - "Yoshitomo Nara and installation by YNG" - Blum and Poe, Los Angeles * 2004 - "Yoshitomo Nara - New Works" - Blum and Poe, Los Angeles * 2003 - "Inaugural Group Show" - Blum and Poe, Los Angeles * 2001 - "YOSHITOMO NARA In the White Room: An Exhibition of Paintings and Drawings" - Blum and Poe, Santa Monica * 1999 - "YOSHITOMO NARA An Exhibition of Sculpture in Two Parts (PARTS I & II)" - Blum and Poe, Santa Monica * 1997 - "Yoshitomo Nara" - Blum and Poe, Santa Monica * 1995 - "YOSHITOMO NARA: PACIFIC BABIES - Los Angeles International '95 In Cooperation with SCAI The Bathhouse, Tokyo" - Blum and Poe, Santa Monica


Selected publications

* Koon, Yeewan (2020)
''Yoshitomo Nara''
Phaidon. * Koplos, Janet. "Making Space for Misfits: Yoshitomo Nara." Sculpture. Volume 30, Number 3. April 2011. p. 42-7. *''A to Z.'' Tokyo: Foil, 2007. .


References


Further reading

*


External links



* ttp://www.asiasociety.org/yoshitomonara Yoshitomo Nara: Nobody's Fool at Asia Society Museum, New York
Yoshitomo Nara at The Museum of Modern Art, New York (MoMA)

Yoshitomo Nara at The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (MOCA)

Yoshitomo Nara at Minneapolis Institute of Art









San Jose Museum of Art exhibition
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nara, Yoshitomo 1959 births 20th-century Japanese painters 21st-century Japanese painters Aichi Prefectural University of the Arts alumni Japanese anti-war activists Japanese contemporary artists Japanese pop artists Japanese sculptors Kunstakademie Düsseldorf alumni Living people People from Hirosaki