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Singing Birds, Soaring Figures
Ryonosuke Shimomura
(Tokyo showing)
Term:
Friday, January 27 - Wednesday, February 22, 1989
Site and Organizer:
O Art Museum
Juridical Foundation Shinagawa Cultural Promotion Association
Lecture:
gMy Life as an Artist --- the Past, the Present, and the Futureh by
Ryonosuke Shimomura
2:00 p.m., Saturday, January 28, 1989
Ohsaki New City, Tokyo
(Osaka showing)
Term:
Friday, March 3 - Wednesday, March 15, 1989
Site:
Keihan Gallery of Arts and Science 7th floor, Keihan Department Store,
Takatsuki City
Organizer: T
he Asahi Newspaper Company
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The first and a full scale retrospective of Ryonosuke Shimomura, who
was an innovator of the postwar Japanese-style painting and whose figure
was known as a very unique one in the modern art world.
Mr. Shimomura was born in Osaka in 1923 (the twelfth year of the Taisho
Period), whose father being a Noh player. He graduated from the Kyoto
Municipal School of Painting (present Kyoto Municipal College of Fine
Arts) in 1943 (the eighteenth year of the Showa Period). After the War,
he took part in the formation of PAN-REAL Art Association together with
the young Japanese-style painters who were full of avant-garde spirit
and active in Kyoto. By doing so, he rebelled against the conventionalism
of the Japanese-style painting circles, and aimed at the further possibility
in expression of the Japanese-style painting, the art of the glue and
colors. Since then he has been one of the central figure in the association
up till today. Besides, he participated in the Japan International Art
Exhibition, Contemporary Japanese Art Exhibition, and in abroad, Pittsburgh
International Contemporary Sculpture, or San Paulo Biennial exhibitions
and his activity did not stay within the domain of established Japanese-style
painting.
His earlier works started with group figures influenced by the Cubism,
but, gradually, his theme converged on birds and his pictures were filled
with sharp modeling sense mainly composed with lines. From somewhere
around 1959 (the 34th year of the Showa Period), he employed his original
technique to pile up papier mache on the surface of the painting and
put paint over it, in whose organic form, almost like a hieroglyph,
he expressed sentiments. After that, impressed by ancient wall paintings
and relief sculptures, his style became stronger and more monumental.
Furthermore, after 1973 (the 48th year of the Showa Period) he returned
to colors on paper, and, in his gScreen of Cockfighth, he succeeded
in representing strained space feeling of his original, still containing
some abstract forms within. In his late years, he continued a free use
of papier mache, coloring, collage and what not in composing his pictures.
All the while, he held many shows of his etchings and ceramics (which
he called gYakemonoh) and also he did some stage art and proved his
multifarious talents.
This exhibition is the first one trying to give a full portrait of
the artist, who represented a strained feel of life through his constant
use of birds as his motifs while he tried many means of expressions.
The exhibition consists of more than 50 representative works, along
with etchings and ceramic works.
* Mr. Ryonosuke Shimomura passed away in December of 1998.
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