RONIN GLOBUS artist-in-residence program Press Packet 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
Ronin Gallery and Globus Washitsu are pleased to announce that Yoshihito Kawase is the winner of the 2019 Ronin|Globus Artist-in-Residence Program. As artist-in-residence, he will be the featured artist in Ronin Gallery’s summer exhibition Contemporary Talents of Japan (July 9– July 26 and Aug 20– Aug 29). In addition, he will receive a three-week residency at Brooklyn Botanic Garden, a one month stay at Globus Washitsu in central Manhattan, a stipend, and transportation between Tokyo and NYC. Masahiko Minami was named first runner up and four of his works will be on exhibition in Contemporary Talents of Japan. On March 27, our distinguished panel of judges chose Kawase from over 50 applicants based on three criteria: artistic excellence, clarity of concept, and originality in interpretation of this year’s theme: Ryusui (流水), meaning flowing stream, running water. Ryusui represents the fluid, flowing, formless things in the natural world, changing according to the seasons and the gentle flow of water. This theme commemorates the completion of Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s major water conservation project that connects various water systems throughout the Garden, linking the pond in the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden with the pond and water features in the Shelby White and Leon Levy Water Garden. In addition to providing a freshwater habitat for plants and local migrating birds, the pioneering design of this project will help to save 21 million gallons of water annually, and will significantly mitigate water runoff into the city’s waterways during major storms. A private reception will be held for Kawase by Ronin Gallery on July 9, and he will be in residence at Brooklyn Botanic Garden Tuesday through Friday from July 9 – July 26. During his time in NYC, public lectures and other events will take place at both Ronin Gallery and Globus Washitsu. For the second year in a row, a portion of the exhibition proceeds from Contemporary Talents of Japan will go our charitable beneficiary, 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. 3
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. 16�x16�. 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. 8
Salvation. Masahiko Minami. 35.8� x 35.8�. 2014. Charcoal on panel.
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Past Participants 2018 Ronin | Globus Artist-in-Residence
Asako Iwasawa
Breeze from Morning. 29”x80”. Acrylic on Canvas.
2017 Ronin | Globus Artist-in-Residence
Katsutoshi Yuasa
Tokyo Story. 39.5”x 72”. 2013. Oil-based woodcut on hand-painted paper.
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2016 Ronin | Globus Artist-in-Residence
OZ Keisuke Yamaguchi
The Images of the 33 Reincarnations of Kannon Wave - The Spirit of Tomorrow. OZ Keisuke Yamaguchi. 31.5” x 47.25”. 2016. Acrylic on canvas.
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Special Thanks 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
RONIN GALLERY
212.688.0188 RoninGallery.com Press Contact: David Libertson DTL@Roningallery.com
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