Lot 1133: YUKO NASAKA

YUKO NASAKA
(Born in 1938)
Work (Sakuhin)
signed, titled and dated 'Yuko Nasaka; Sakuhin; 1964' in Japanese (on the back of the frame)
plastic, lacquer on board
134 x 134 cm. (52 3/4 x 52 3/4 in.)
Painted in 1964

A post modern painter of the Gutai movement and a student of the pioneering artist Jiro Yoshihara in the 1960s, Yuko Nasaka's artwork slightly different from that of her contemporaries. Entitled Work (Sakuhin) (Lot 1133), Nasaka disguises a board with malleable plastic which is swirled into the nationalistic shape of yen or literally, circle. Unevenly formed with swirls that persist at varying degrees into the very center of each individual disk, each yen becomes a unit of its own that we imagine can multiple infinitely to create works of any size the artist desires. Each circle has been painted over with a varying hue of blue silver lacquer to establish an overall futuristic, metallic feel which despite the traditional paint medium, is untried in the works of Nasaka's contemporaries.

The recurrent theme of the dormant yen in her works suggests a sense of infinity and creates an illusion depth that captivates the viewer's eyes, although the piece is in fact, a relief. The act of painting circles requires concentration, skill and patience and in a sense is effective as meditation itself. Nasaka's rhythmic and repetitive act essential to create such large multiple circles suggests that the act itself was a large part of the final work; in line with spiritualism, it is not a simple means to an end but a part of the product itself. While Nasaka was mostly active during the Gutai years in the 1960s, this post modern work is a demonstration of the futuristic and avant-garde vision of many of the Japanese post modern artists thus paving the way for the contemporary art world today.