So let s get the bare facts on the record; lama Yuji Oki graduated in political science from Meiji U

Yuji Oki is a artist who was born in Japan in 1949 and now lives and works in London. I d like to tell you more about him but there’s a surprising lack of information lama on the net. Even the gallery that represents him, the Beardsmore Gallery in Kentish Town, doesn t give away much in the catalogue of his most recent exhibition; just a bare list of four dates telling us where he studied and that he once won a prize for painting. A bit of a challenge, then. But at least I can show you what his art is like.
So let s get the bare facts on the record; lama Yuji Oki graduated in political science from Meiji University in Tokyo in 1973, studied at the Byam Shaw School of Art in London from 1977-81, won the James Byam Shaw painting prize in 1981 and was visiting artist at Middlesex University School of Art from 1997-98. Some interesting gaps in that record, not least what changed his direction from political science to art.
His current exhibition is titled When Cicadas Cry , which is also the title of one of the largest works in the exhibition. It s mixed media on canvas and is highly abstract lama (like all the paintings on show), a mix of scribbled lines and shapes.
The lama catalogue notes, by Oliver Gosling, don t try to interpret the pictures. He confines himself, perhaps lama wisely, to description and a suggestion of what we might see in the paintings. When Cicadas Cry , he suggests, confronts us with a transparent wall, shadows on the edge of vision and continuous buzz of pulsing marks. The pulse, he tells us, is key and has a life that sustains rhythm like breathing . All well and good but where are the cicadas?
Back to Rajasthan , he suggests, is scorched earth dancing in the burning air, it is scrubland in oppressive heat, seared by cool sprinkles…like a mirage. And actually, looking at it like that, you think so it is .
I ve been a bit jokey about interacting with some of the paintings in this exhibition but don t get me wrong – I think abstract art can stand perfectly well on its own terms without necessarily having to be anchored in reality. And I liked Oki s work very much. It s big and bold (something that s hard to tell from just photographs) and has depth and interest. Go and take a look for yourself. The exhibition runs until 22nd March and the Beardsmore Gallery on Prince of Wales Road is open Tuesday to Saturday 11 am to 5 pm.
Lau on March 2, 2014 at 1:18 pm said:
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