Japan Re-imagined/Post-war Art

Exhibition

Exhibition Overview

Japan Re-imagined/Post-war Art
Japan Re-imagined/Post-war Art
Kris Ercums, curator
Asia Gallery, Spencer Museum of Art, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas

Many artists in the wake of the postwar years turned to a profound examination of Japanese history, tradition and society as both a means for self-critique and cultural regeneration. This process of “re-imagining” Japan during the postwar period took on many forms. Some artists sought to celebrate the “Japanese spirit,” depicting it in fresh, contemporary idioms as a way of granting it universal appeal. For others remembering the past was part of a critical investigation of Japanese society. New developments in the international art scene like Pop and conceptualism offered other Japanese artists a fresh perspective for approaching their society through art. Presenting many never-before exhibited prints and ceramics from the Spencer’s permanent collection, Japan Re-imagined/Post-war Art explores the multiple ways in which Japanese artists during the later half of the twentieth century negotiated issues like culture, memory, time and space.

This exhibition is organized by Kris Ercums, Asian art curator, in conjunction with the exhibition Resounding Spirit: Japanese Contemporary Art of the 1960s.

Exhibition images

Works of art

hanaire 花入 (flower container)
circa 1730, Edo period (1600–1868)
tea caddy
Edo period (1600–1868)
chaire 茶入 (tea caddy)
late 1800s–early 1900s, Meiji period (1868–1912) or Taisho period (1912–1926)
Ikeda Masuo (1934–1997), untitled
Ikeda Masuo (1934–1997)
1968, Showa period (1926–1989)
Hagiwara Hideo (1913–2007), Somme Day
1959, Showa period (1926–1989)
Hosoe Eikō (1933–2024), Embrace #3
1971, Showa period (1926–1989)
Kawachi Seikō (born 1948), Katsura X
1984, Showa period (1926–1989)
Itō Sekisui (born 1941), tsubo
Itō Sekisui (born 1941)
mid-late 1900s
Miyashita Zenji (born 1939), vase
Miyashita Zenji (born 1939)
circa 1980s, Showa period (1926–1989)
Jun Kaneko (born 1942), untitled (Dango 89-5-10)
Jun Kaneko (born 1942)
1989
Tanaka Ryōhei (1933–1999), Ruined Farm House #4 (Wall #4)
1975, Showa period (1926–1989)
Tanaka Ryōhei (1933–1999), Wall #4
1984, Showa period (1926–1989)
Hagiwara Hideo (1913–2007), Memories of the East
1983, Showa period (1926–1989)
Clifton Karhu (1927–2007), Karasuma Gate
1989, Showa period (1926–1989)
Takahiro Kondō (born 1958), Ginga '01 (The Milky Way '01)
Takahiro Kondō (born 1958)
2001
Sawada Tetsurō (1933–1998), Skyscape
1985, Showa period (1926–1989)
Yoshida Tōshi (1911–1995), Unknown (Michi no)
1968, Showa period (1926–1989)
Kabasawa Kenji (born 1948), Namban mizusashi (Namban water jar with lid)
Kabasawa Kenji (born 1948)
1989
Morishita Ryōzō (born 1947), A Weir
Morishita Ryōzō (born 1947)
2000
Matsuda Yuriko (born 1943), Tea Pot with Eggplant
Matsuda Yuriko (born 1943)
1992
Ōura Nobuyuki (born 1949); Yosuke Akiba, Publishers 21st Century, Inc.; Okabe Print Studio; Print House OM, II
II
1982–1983, Showa period (1926–1989)
Ōura Nobuyuki (born 1949); Yosuke Akiba, Publishers 21st Century, Inc.; Okabe Print Studio; Print House OM, VIII
1982–1983, Showa period (1926–1989)
Ōura Nobuyuki (born 1949); Yosuke Akiba, Publishers 21st Century, Inc.; Okabe Print Studio; Print House OM, X
X
1982–1983, Showa period (1926–1989)
Ōura Nobuyuki (born 1949); Yosuke Akiba, Publishers 21st Century, Inc.; Okabe Print Studio; Print House OM, XII
XII
1982–1983, Showa period (1926–1989)
Ōura Nobuyuki (born 1949); Yosuke Akiba, Publishers 21st Century, Inc.; Okabe Print Studio; Print House OM, XIII
1982–1983, Showa period (1926–1989)
Toshio Shibata (born 1949), Kikuchi City, Kumamoto Prefecture
Toshio Shibata (born 1949)
1999
Hiroshi Kawano, Simulated Color Mosaic
1973, Showa period (1926–1989)
Inui Tai (born 1929), Fighting Festival
1980s, Showa period (1926–1989)
坪井明日香 Tsuboi Asuka (born 1932–2022), Bridge of Phantom
坪井明日香 Tsuboi Asuka (born 1932–2022)
2006
Hide Kawanishi, One Hundred Scenes of Kobe
Hide Kawanishi
date unknown
Iwami Reika (1927–2020), Waxing Moon and Ocean "B"
Iwami Reika (1927–2020)
1990
Sueharu Fukami (born 1947), 天空II Tenkū II (Heaven II)
Sueharu Fukami (born 1947)
1980–1992
Seto Hiroshi (1941–1994), untitled (88/01)
Seto Hiroshi (1941–1994)
1988, Showa period (1926–1989)
Kuroda Shigeki (born 1953), Riders-B
Kuroda Shigeki (born 1953)
circa 1984, Showa period (1926–1989)
Imamura Yoshio (born 1948), Tracks of Time, Focus of Time
Imamura Yoshio (born 1948)
1992
Morimura Yasumasa (born 1951), Ambiguous Beauty (Aimai no bi)
Morimura Yasumasa (born 1951)
1995
Honda Kazuhisa (born 1948), 116th Landscape
1979, Showa period (1926–1989)
Miyamoto Shufu (born 1950), 雨 (Rain)
1985, Showa period (1926–1989)
Saitō Kiyoshi (1907–1997), Gate Horyūji, Nara
1970, Showa period (1926–1989)

Events

March 7, 2008
Talk
Gallery 318