YOSHITAKA NANJO
STATEMENT
Born in Kagawa, 1977. Graduated from Tokyo Zokei University in 2002.
Yoshitaka Nanjo creates landscape paintings using actual soil based on his field-work.
He has been working on many subjects based on Japanese people’s religious views, manners and landscape views that came from their travels or journeys such as ‘Isemoude’(travel culture of Shinto and Edo period), ‘Edo five routes’, ‘Mt.Fuji worship’, ‘Tokyo Bay’(‘Edo-mae’ in front of Edo bay=Tokyo bay culture), ‘Kumano Kodo’(animism) and ‘Mountain Worship’.
STATEMENT
Yoshitaka Nanjo creates landscape paintings using actual soil based on his field-work. He has been working on many subjects based on Japanese people’s religious views, manners and landscape views that came from their travels or journeys such as ‘Isemoude’(travel culture of Shinto and Edo period), ‘Edo five routes’, ‘Mt.Fuji worship’, ‘Tokyo Bay’(‘Edo-mae’ in front of Edo bay=Tokyo bay culture), ‘Kumano Kodo’(animism) and ‘Mountain Worship’. He actually goes to the subject places, walks with his own legs and observes the scenery of towns and mountains to create artworks. He dissolves images in the pictures he took using a computer until the scenery becomes objects and sieves earth and soil until they get as small as pigment. He then changes over to an analog process with a paint brush and transcribes the scenery on a viewing surface according to the digital outputs of images. “Layering soil acrylic, digital work and analog work creates conflicting spaces in the painting. In doing so, a landscape will be produced that amounts to more than the original landscape – or a landscape completely different to the original will appear in the painting. At that moment, the background colored in white many times will be changed into void space with boundless colors.” His works are visually very simple. He also tries not to fill the paintings completely with information and force viewers to see the work as a narrative, but instead tries to produce landscape paintings as if they can arouse viewers’ aesthetic sensibilities with very little information, almost as if his image is just about to reach viewers. Although his works are dealing with ‘landscape’ which is the most classic, and can be a boring subject, the landscapes he creates are very modernistic and stylish, and they are receiving overwhelming reputations from various kinds of creators.
BIOGRAPHY
Biography
- 1977
- Born in Kagawa, Japan
Education
- 2002
- Graduate school of Tokyo Zokei University, Tokyo, Japan
- 2001
- Bachelor of Arts, Tokyo Zokei University, Tokyo, Japan
EXHIBITIONS ＆ ART FAIRS
Selected Solo Exhibitions
- 2011
- “KIWA-KESHIKI -Isemoude 2-”, YUKARI ART CONTEMPORARY, Tokyo, Japan
- 2009
- “KIWA-KESHIKI -Isemoude 1-”, YUKARI ART CONTEMPORARY, Tokyo, Japan
- 2008
- “FUJI TOZAN -climbing Mt.Fuji-”, YUKARI ART CONTEMPORARY, Tokyo, Japan
- 2007
- “Yoshitaka Nanjo -The world of the soil-”, COEXIST, Tokyo, Japan
- “Tokyo Bay”, Switch Point, Tokyo, Japan
- “Yoshitaka Nanjo exhibition”, Gallery staff selection#16, Sagamihara Citizen’s Gallery, Kanagawa, Japan
- 2006
- “Koshu Dochu”, Gallery ES, Tokyo, Japan
- “1-28-2 Asagaya-kita, Suginami-ku,Tokyo 2006.02.15-2003.12.28” Suikatou, Tokyo, Japan
- 2003
- “5-46-13 Jingumae Shibuya-ku,Tokyo 2003.12.23-2003.12.28”, Gallery ES, Tokyo, Japan
- 2002
- “Must see!”, Gallery ES, Tokyo, Japan
Selected Group Exhibitions
- 2011
- “Become We”, NEXT DOOR GALLERY, Seoul, Korea
- “NAKANOJO BIENNALE 2011”, Nakanojo Town, Gunma, Japan
- “ZIPANGU”, Takashimaya, Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto, Japan
- gallery4walls 2nd Anniversary “緣”, gallery4walls, Seoul, Korea
- 2010
- Tokyo Zokei University, Painting Building Closing Exhibition “camaboco”, Tokyo Zokei University, Tokyo, Japan
- 2009
- “TONARI：Their personal episode”, gallery4walls, Seoul, Korea
- “TIEAF-2009 Tokyo International Environment Art Festival”, Korean Cultural Center, Tokyo, Japan
- “BIEAF-2009 Busan International Environment Art Festival”, Busan, Korea
- 2008
- “Art Program Ome 2008 aerial perspective-Ome-U39”, Ome City, Tokyo, Japan
- “BIEAF-2008 Busan International Environment Art Festival”, Ulsukdo Art Center, Korea
- 2007
- “Illustration 2007, The Choice award”, ITOYA Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
- Artist in residence in Kannonji, Kannonji, Kagawa, Japan
- 2005
- “Tokyo Wonder Wall 2005”, Metropolitan Museum of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- “WORKS IN STUDIO”, ONS, STUDIO Ushigoya, Studio Co, Kanagawa, Japan
- 2004
- “STUDIO Ushigoya”, Gallery ES, Tokyo, Japan
- “9 persons exhibition”, Kobayashi building, Kandajinbocho, Chiyodaku, Tokyo, Japan
- “Kei-shikaku-no iroha”, Sagamihara Citizen’s Gallery, Kanagawa, Japan
- “Since 1978 alumni of Takamatsu crafts and art university now”, Takamatsu Art museum, Kagawa, Japan
- 2003
- “Mt.Fuji”, Gallery ES, Tokyo, Japan
- “Open studio”, Sagamihara Citizen’s Gallery, Kanagawa, Japan
- “ART?”, node gallery, Tokyo Zokei University, Tokyo, Japan
- 2002
- “Group Exhibition!”, Mitsubishi electronics, info gallery, Tokyo, Japan
- 2001
- “Primal Scream”, Sagamihara Citizen’s Gallery, Kanagawa, Japan
- 2000
- “a moment”, Shibuya Tepco gallery, Tokyo, Japan
Selected Art Fairs
- 2011
- ART OSAKA 2011, Osaka, Japan
- 2010
- EMERGING DIRECTORS‘ ART FAIR ULTRA 003, Tokyo, Japan
- KIAF, Korea International Art Fair 2010, Seoul, Korea
- ASIA TOP GALLERY HOTEL ART FAIR HONG KONG, Hong Kong
- 2009
- Tokyo Contemporary Art Fair 2009, Tokyo, Japan
- KOMAZAWA MUSEUM X ART, Komazawa Park Housing Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
- ART TAIPEI 2009, Taipei, Taiwan
- 2007
- Tokyo Contemporary Art Fair 2007, Tokyo, Japan
