Ryusui: Contemporary Talents of Japan 2019 Exhibition Booklet

RONIN GLOBUS artist-in-residence program Exhibition Booklet 2019

Water. Yoshihito Kawase. 46� x 35�. 2016. Mineral pigments, sumi ink and gold leaf on paper.

2019 PARTICIPANTS Artist-in-Residence Yoshihito Kawase

First Runner Up Masahiko Minami

Finalists

Kotaro Isobe Mitsuki Noguchi Fumio Shiozawa

This summer, Ronin Gallery will open the doors of 425 Madison Avenue for one last exhibition before moving to our new home at 32 W 40th Street. The 4th annual Contemporary Talents of Japan exhibition, held in conjunction with the Ronin|Globus Artist-in-Residence Program, will feature the works of Yoshihito Kawase, the 2019 Ronin|Globus Artist-in-Residence, as well as the works of Masahiko Minami, 2019 First Runner Up. A number of works by past program participants and finalists will also be on view.

The theme for the 2019 program and exhibition is Ryusui (流水), meaning flowing stream and running water. Ryusui represents the fluid, flowing, formless things in the natural world, changing according to the seasons and the gentle flow of water. As traditional and contemporary processes converge, this year’s Contemporary Talents of Japan will present diverse interpretations of this aesthetic.

Working as a nihon-ga or “Japanese-style painting” artist, Yoshihito Kawase combines rich mineral pigments, gold, silver, and textural carbon to create endlessly intriguing reflections of the overlooked wonders of the natural world. Though he has held successful solo exhibitions in Japan and his work can be found in the permanent collections of museums throughout Japan, this will be his first major exhibition in the United States.

In contrast, Masahiko Minami’s minimalist landscapes rendered in charcoal and graphite offer a study in dramatic contrast. As finely textured line creeps into bright channels of the bare panel, his landscapes present a tension between absence and depth, reflection and contemplation. A portion of the exhibition proceeds will go to this year’s charitable sponsor, Brooklyn Botanic Garden.

ABOUT THE PROGRAM The annual Ronin|Globus Artist-in-Residence Program seeks to stimulate crosscultural dialogue through Japan’s vanguard of visual art while providing the opportunity for emerging and mid-career Japanese visual artists to live, work, and exhibit in New York City.

PRESS CONTACT For additional information or high resolution images, please contact David Libertson.

E: dtl@roningallery.com T: 212.688.0188 2

PROGRAM SPONSORS Ronin Gallery

The Ronin Gallery is the leading family-owned Japanese and East Asian art gallery in New York City. It is home to the largest private collection of 17th-21st century Japanese prints for sale in the United States, as well as many works by Japan’s and East Asia’s contemporary talents. For more information about the gallery and to access the gallery’s exhibits, visit: www.roningallery.com/

Globus Family The

Globus

Family

has

long

been

associated

with

cultural

interchange

between Japan and United States. They have sponsored events at eminent institutions including Japan Society and Asia Society. Their scope spans dance, theater, cinema, art, craft, and performance groups. Globus Washitsu is a venue to spark the expression, knowledge, and wonderment that arise from dialogue between Japan and the United States. For more information, visit: www.nycwashitsu.com/

U.S. MEDIA SPONSOR Spoon & Tamago

Spoon & Tamago is a Japanese arts and culture blog that spans the categories of fine art and architecture, to product and graphic design. It was founded by Johnny Strategy in 2007 as a means of attracting international attention to the Japanese art and design scene, and is currently based out of New York City and Tokyo. For more information, visit: www.spoon-tamago.com/

JAPAN MEDIA SPONSOR ONBEAT

ONBEAT＝音美衣杜, is composed with four kanji characters, “音”(music), “美”(art), “衣”(fashion) and “杜”(forest, environment). ONBEAT magazine is a “Bilingual Magazine for Art and Culture from the Edge of the East” and is published biannually. It aims to introduce various arts and cultures all around the world as well as Japanese art and culture to the world. For more information visit: http://www.kyoto-art.ac.jp/en/

CHARITABLE SPONSOR Brooklyn Botanic Garden

Brooklyn Botanic Garden is an urban botanic garden that connects people to the world of plants, fostering delight and curiosity while inspiring an appreciation and sense of stewardship of the environment. In the Garden, in its community, and well beyond, BBG inspires people of all ages through the conservation, display, and enjoyment of plants; with educational programs that emphasize learning by doing; and with research focused on understanding and conserving regional plants and plant communities.

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JUDGES Johnny Waldman

Founder & editor of Spoon & Tamago Japanese arts and culture blog

Katsura Yamaguchi

Managing director of Christies Japan

Kimiko Lupfer

Member, Board of Trustees at Brooklyn Botanic Garden Corporation

Kyoko Sato

Independent Curator and Director, East Asia Programming, WhiteBox

Mary Ann Roos

Art collector and philanthropist

Masako Shiba

Akiyo Yagyu

Project manager of Artothèque

Asako Iwasawa

2018 Ronin | Globus Artist-in-Residence

Everett Brown

Japanese culture promoter, writer, and photographer

Hiroko Ishinabe

Founder of the One Piece Club

Oz Keisuke Yamaguchi

2016 Ronin | Globus Artist-in-Residence

Joji Mita

Global Art Management Advisor

Director, Asian Cultural Council Japan Foundation | Director of Engagement and Outreach, Asian Cultural Council

Katsutoshi Yuasa

Miwako Tezuka

hpgrp GALLERY, Director

Consulting curator for Reversible Destiny Foundation, Co-director of PoNJA-GenKon

Nachi Das

Art collector & capital market executive

Yasuko Harris

Former gallery director at Honjo Gallery in Tokyo, Japan

Yukie Kamiya

Director of the Japan Society Gallery

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AMBASSADORS

2017 Ronin | Globus Artist-in-Residence

Kentaro Totsuka Kouji Hayashi

Manager of the Sato Sakura Museum

Noburu Tsubaki

Contemporary artist, professor, regional director of Setouchi International Art Festival

Toyomi Hoshina

Vice President, Trustee and Professor, Tokyo University of the Art

2019 Ronin|Globus Artist in Residence Program Schedule Date Monday

8-Jul

Wednesday

10-Jul

Thursday

11-Jul

Friday

12-Jul

Saturday

13-Jul

Tuesday

16-Jul

Wednesday

17-Jul

Thursday

18-Jul

Friday

19-Jul

Tuesday

23-Jul

Wednesday

24-Jul

Schedule Opening Reception with the Artist in Residence for Contemporary Talents of Japan: 2019 Ronin Gallery 425 Madison Avenue, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10017 5:30PM - 7:30 PM Open Studio Hours Brooklyn Botanic Garden 990 Washington Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11225 10:00AM - 4:00PM Open Studio Hours Brooklyn Botanic Garden 990 Washington Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11225 10:00AM - 4:00PM Open Studio Hours Brooklyn Botanic Garden 990 Washington Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11225 10:00AM - 4:00PM Artist Talk with Yoshihito Kawase Sato Sakura Gallery 501 W 20th Street 2:00PM - 3:30PM Open Studio Hours Brooklyn Botanic Garden 990 Washington Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11225 10:00AM - 4:00PM Open Studio Hours Brooklyn Botanic Garden 990 Washington Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11225 10:00AM - 4:00PM Open Studio Hours Brooklyn Botanic Garden 990 Washington Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11225 10:00AM - 4:00PM Open Studio Hours Brooklyn Botanic Garden 990 Washington Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11225 10:00AM - 4:00PM Open Studio Hours Brooklyn Botanic Garden 990 Washington Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11225 10:00AM - 4:00PM Open Studio Hours Brooklyn Botanic Garden 990 Washington Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11225 10:00AM - 4:00PM 5

2019 Ronin | Globus Artist-in-Residence

Yoshihito Kawase Born in Tokyo in 1973, Yoshihito Kawase completed his PhD in Japanese-style painting at Tokyo National University of the Arts. Working as a nihon-ga or “Japanese-style painting” artist, Kawase uses mineral pigments to create a rich spectrum of color, layering gold, silver, and textural carbon ink to create endlessly intriguing reflections of the overlooked wonders of the natural world. In his most recent work, Kawase emphasizes the relationship between his subject matter and the materials themselves. Driven by the idea of yohaku –characterized not by emptiness, but through an anxious presence, an ever-present atmosphere –Kawase explores the overlooked aspects, the “white darkness,” of life and his work.

Kawase’s paintings have been featured in solo and group shows throughout Japan and can be found in permanent collections such as the Museum of Modern Art, Ibaraki, the Sato Sakura Museum, and the Tokugawa Art Museum. He is the recipient of the Yamatane Art Museum Nihonga Award (2016) and the 13th Sato International Culture Foundation Scholarship (2005). Named first runner-up in 2016, Kawase was chosen as the 2019 Ronin | Globus Artist-in-Residence.

Fragrant Breeze.

Yoshihito Kawase. 19”x23”. 2019. Mineral pigments, sumi, gold leaf and silver leaf on paper .

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White Drop.

Yoshihito Kawase. 63�x51�. 2015. Mineral pigments, sumi, gold leaf and silver leaf on paper.

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Hagoita.

Yoshihito Kawase. 15� x 4.5�. 2016. Mineral pigments, sumi, gold leaf and silver leaf on wood.

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Yadokari.

Yoshihito Kawase. 9.5”x13”. 2019. Mineral pigments, sumi, gold leaf and silver leaf on paper .

Sound of Thunder.

Yoshihito Kawase. 19.67”x 23.85”. 2019. Mineral pigments, sumi, gold leaf and silver leaf on paper .

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2019 First Runner Up

Masahiko Minami Born in Ibaraki, Japan in 1968, Masahiko Minami received his Master’s from Musashino Art University. Minami works with charcoal and graphite to create minimalist landscapes in dramatic contrast. As finely textured line creeps into bright channels of the bare panel, his landscapes present a tension between absence and depth, reflection and contemplation. The bright white waterways so central to his work appear impenetrable, yet Minami believes that though “what we cannot see is hidden in the depth of the water… our vanity and feelings are reflected on its surface.” He states, “I do my artwork with the prayer that peace comes to the mind of each restless traveler reflecting upon the mystery of water.”

Minami lives and works in Tokyo. He has actively exhibited his work in solo exhibitions throughout Tokyo since 2008. In addition, he has also exhibited his work in group shows in Tokyo and participated in international art fairs in Hong Kong, Korea, Norway and Tokyo.

Named first runner up in the 2019 Ronin | Globus Artist-in-Residence Program, a selection of Minami’s work will be exhibited in Ronin Gallery’s 2019 Contemporary Talents of Japan: Ryusui exhibition.

Where.

Masahiko Minami. 18” x 10.7”. 2015. Charcoal on panel.

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Salvation.

Masahiko Minami. 35.8� x 35.8�. 2014. Charcoal on panel.

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2018 Ronin | Globus Artist-in-Residence

Asako Iwasawa

Memories of Brooklyn Botanic Garden. 39.25”x 28.5”. Acrylic on Canvas.

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2017 Ronin | Globus Artist-in-Residence

Katsutoshi Yuasa

A Moment of Silence. 53�x 24�. 2013. Oil-based woodcut on hand-painted paper.

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2016 Ronin | Globus Artist-in-Residence

OZ Keisuke Yamaguchi

Inspiration from Copake Lake. 18” x 24”. 2016. Acrylic on canvas. Completed during residency.

Middle Scenery: Lake. 11” x 13.5”. 2016. Acrylic on canvas. Completed during residency.

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RONIN GALLERY

212.688.0188 RoninGallery.com Press Contact: David Libertson DTL@Roningallery.com

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