K01
Artcourt Gallery
（Osaka）
Touch the Celestial Realm and an Ethereal Sense of Beauty
The exhibition will feature new works by Kyoto-based artists Kozo Nishino, Shihoko Fukumoto, and Chihiro Yoshioka.
Against the backdrop of Kyoto’s abundant nature and history, we endeavor to create an opportunity to touch the depths of the spirit through the consonance of these selected works that explore the celestial realm and an ethereal sense of beauty.
Chihiro Yoshioka’s muqarnas series depict meticulously detailed earth-bound views of tree branches adorned with gleaming autumn foliage set against the sky. Since the 2000s, Yoshioka’s works have centered around the theme of landscape depictions. In her works where light and dark converge, she captures the minute changes in light with her shaded hues and unique mediums which provide a revelatory experience to the contemporary world.
Shihoko Fukumoto, who exhibited with the Gutai Group in their final exhibition, is a pioneer of Japan Blue, contemporary indigo dyeing. This exhibition will include works from her Dot Work series, which she has continued to develop since the 1990s, inspired by her encounter with an exceptionally rare Turfan cotton. The floating white dots of Turfan cotton, which radiate against the deep indigo blue, are incandescent, immutable like stars, transcending time and space while simultaneously conjuring a firefly-like ephemeral glow.
Emptiness and natural phenomena are palpable themes in Kozo Nishino’s large-scale sculptures of refined stainless steel and titanium handiwork based on his structure-based aesthetic. In this exhibition, his kinetic creations will be showcased; their subtle movement responds to the breeze which graze the periphery of the works. The graceful lines of his sculptures dissolve into the depths of their surrounding environments, inviting the viewer into a celestial realm beyond the clouds.
Gallery Information
Since ARTCOURT Gallery opened its doors in Osaka in 2003, the gallery has focused on internationally acclaimed artists such as Hitoshi Nomura, Saburo Murakami, Norio Imai and Hitoshi Nakazato who stood at the forefront of postwar Japanese art as well as Yo Akiyama, Shihoko Fukumoto, Kozo Nishino, and younger artists who will forge the future. We organize exhibitions, taking advantage of the ceiling height of the space, which is seven meters high, coordinate exhibitions outside of Japan, supply commissioned work for architectural spaces, and strive to place works in the collections of museums and foundations all over the world. In 2018 ARTCOURT Gallery opened ACG Villa Kyoto, a viewing room in Kyoto. The gallery aims to be a base designed to convey outstanding Japanese contemporary art.
