We believe that the Japanese contemporary art should appreciate the individual Otaku culture that lurks in the core of each contemporary artist’s artistic expression. In our exhibit Ohshima Fine Art will try demonstrating it by unveiling such Otaku culture in various formats at this exhibit.
What is the definition of Japanese contemporary art? Generally speaking, "Contemporary Art" refers to art in the context of Western art standards, and refers to artists' activities that reflect the state of the current society in which they live.
However, does all contemporary art in Japan really fit into this context?
So, we would like to pose a question: Don't we find conspicuous differences in the expression of Japanese contemporary artists who live in Japan at this time, depending on its context, from one of Western contemporary art?
For example, some say that the so-called “Otaku culture,” such as anime, manga, and the characters that frequently appear in the works of Japanese artists, is originated in picture scrolls such as Chōjū-giga (鳥獣戯画, literally "Animal Caricatures”), the oldest work of manga. In fact, we can find fragments of this style not only in traditional Japanese
paintings, but also in all kinds of contemporary Japanese creations. Japanese anime and manga culture have been passed down from ancient times to the present, and also can be seen in the expressions of contemporary
Japanese artists. Such expressions of “Otaku”, are not in keeping with the realities of contemporary society, and there is no doubt that there is an aspect of Otaku expression that is not in accordance with Western standards of contemporary art, but is simply a shell of a world of one's own taste.
The anime figures, dolls, posters, and toys that typically fill the living spaces of Otaku are more familiar “art" than any other works of art to them, and from the perspective of the individual Otaku, they are the most valuable emotional anchor above all else. And if an artist is an Otaku, he or she may express in their works vestiges of the manga or anime characters they have drawn since childhood, or with the longing they still hold for those characters, as they are. In the extreme, it is a solace, a desire, and a treasure that exists only for one particular individual. In other words, it is the antithesis of contemporary art, which exists as "art" whose main purpose is communicating with others.
In this way, Japanese contemporary art gives away a certain subcultural soul and underground nostalgia, as if it "came from a private Otaku's nerdy bedroom" in some part. Or perhaps you may be even feeling “guilty” while viewing the works of Otaku artists, as if you have peeked into someone else's mind, rather than feeling comfortable. Popular old Japanese art forms such as "Ukiyo-e", the idol paintings of the Edo period, and “Shunga", pornographic paintings, which have been handed down for hundreds of years and openly expose “Otaku fetish” such as longing and the desire to collect, may seem vulgar and immoral to display in the middle of a modern international society.
Could we not say, however, those Otaku activities, which are generally considered objectionable are a distorted attempt to poison, dissolve, and expose from within the shell that covers "something" that has long been viewed as problematic or heretical by society. We dare say this Otaku-like thinking (or taste) is a meaningful act of contemporary Japanese artistic expression.
While we are proud of this deviation of Japanese artistic expression from Western culture, we are conscious that it is too far from Western contemporary art’s mainstream, and that the world art scene is too far away to reach out from the "absolute realm" of the Otaku's secure personal space. Nonetheless, it is our mission to present the possibility that this accumulation of the kitsch creations is a form of art that is truly sought after elsewhere, even outside of Japan.
Here, we would like to assert that "at the core of the artistic expression of contemporary artists whose origins are in Japan lies the culture of each Otaku, and we should appreciate such culture’s appearance. “
Therefore, our exhibit will try to demonstrate the development of contemporary art in Japan that has been quietly nurtured in the forest of rich Otaku culture of Japan.
宮城勝規 miyagi katsunori
小泉朋美 koizumi tomomi
玉川宗則 tamagawa munenori
松下沙織 matsushita saori
南花奈 minami kana
石山あゆみ ishiyama ayumi
山本一博 yamamoto kazuhiro
ヲ山敬子 oyama keiko
櫻井康弘 sakurai yasuhiro
July 21 - 24
Lumen Field Event Center
800 Occidental Ave S
Seattle, WA 98134