Photo/Illutration “Sokojikara” (2021) (Private collection)

KOCHI--The Museum of Art, Kochi is hosting a major retrospective dedicated to Hiroshi Okutani that explores the full spectrum of the painter’s artistic career in pursuit of blending Japanese and Western styles.

Organized by The Asahi Shimbun and other institutions, “Hiroshi Okutani: Towards Infinity” runs until Jan. 16. The exhibition showcases 100 or so of his works.

As a leading modern Western-style painter, Otani, 87, is known for his figurative paintings rendered in vivid colors.

The recipient of the Order of Culture was the youngest child of a farming family in present-day Sukumo, Kochi Prefecture.

He enrolled at Tokyo University of the Arts to study oil painting under the tutelage of Takeshi Hayashi, a key figure of the Dokuritsu Fine Arts Society, and learn the craft of impasto techniques used in Fauvism.

Although Okutani distinguished himself, a turning point came at around the age of 30 when he realized he was better suited to fresco paintings.

He won recognition for his first paintings created with glazing techniques, “Tokage to Fuigo” (Lizard and bellows) and “Kiji to Sagi” (Green pheasant and heron). Gaining confidence, Okutani burned around 40 impasto paintings he had created in the past.

The painter said he chooses motifs for his works instinctively; a ball-shaped mirror and animal skulls he found in Paris, landscapes he recalled from the past or perhaps his own face.

He was inspired to create Japanese-style oil paintings by “digesting” Western-style art when he saw “Attributed to Taira-no-Shigemori,” a national treasure portrait of the feudal warlord, in a museum in southern France when he was 38.

His new work created during the COVID-19 pandemic features demons Ryutoki and Tentoki, which are associated with Kofukuji temple in Nara, against the backdrop of the Naruto tidal whirlpools.

The piece is titled “Sokojikara” (Underlying strength). Okutani experienced severe dizziness while working on the project, but forged ahead even though he was on his knees.

The venue is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (last entry 4:30 p.m.). It is closed from Dec. 27 to Jan. 1.

Admission is 1,200 yen ($10.60) for adults, 850 yen for college students and free for senior high school students and younger children.

For inquiries, visit the official website at (https://moak.jp/event/exhibitions/post_449.html).

Related News