Following last year’s Tokyo Pop Underground shows at Jeffery Deitch Gallery in both New York City and Los Angeles, and the Global Pop Underground exhibition at PARCO Museum in Tokyo earlier this year, Nanzuka officially launches the series’ final chapter today at the newly opened Shinsaibashi PARCO complex in Osaka. Entitled JP Pop Underground, the show is held at the venue’s spacious event hall on the 14th floor, and is the result of the Tokyo-based gallery’s exploration of the context of Japanese contemporary artists outside of the framework of ‘fine art’. Until the Meiji period, most of what was referred to as art were practical items, and had therefore developed together and in integration with popular culture, such as sliding doors, lacquerware, and Ukiyoe serving as posters and commercial portraits.
In fact, all of the aforementioned creations can essentially be regarded as “pop” due to their popular and democratic nature, and are what is referred to as ‘underground’ within the fabric of academic art. Further elaborating on the theme, the exhibition series’ final chapter reflects on Japan‘s resilience after World War II, both economically and regarding natural disasters. All of the Japanese artists included in the show who lived after the war, such as Keiichi Tanaami, Hajime Sorayama, Harumi Yamaguchi, Toshio Saeki, and Hiroo Kikai, were not highly regarded within the Japanese art world because of their innovation and uniqueness. However, due to the recent globalisation of the art scene and the support of younger generation artists, their artistry is now seen in an entirely different light (on through Dec 6).
Shinsaibashi PARCO Event Hall
1-8-3 Shinsaibashi-suji, 14th Floor (Shinsaibashi)
Osaka 542-0058
Telephone: +81 6 77117409
Daily 10-8
Publishers Note
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