.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
Tiger (Koichi) Tateishi was born in Fukuoka in 1941. He began to gain attention after entering the 15th Yomiuri Independent Exhibition at the age of 22. In the spring of 1969, Tateishi moved to Italy with his wife and began producing tableaux. Tateishi saw the single-frame Manga, with its unique way of presenting story and time, as an outstanding form of art, and began incorporating these elements into tableaux divided into frames. He also introduced panoramic view in his paintings, a signature style which is continued in many of his works.
Tateishi's subject matter and composition have a lot in common with the evolution of Japanese Manga in the 20th century. Until the 1950s, Japanese Manga consisted of lyrical images, but in the mid '50s story-driven Manga began to gain prominence. The works of Osamu Tezuka and Manga such as Moonlight Mask and Iron Man No. 28 were highly popular at that time. While these works retained strong ties to children's reading material prior to World War II in terms of theme, value and ideology, they embarked a departure in the way of unfolding stories visually. Post-war culture of the 1950s was strongly influenced by a wave of visualization in the various media. Teenage idols were featured on the covers of magazines like Myojo and Heibon, and a growing number of magazines incorporated colour photographs. Widescreen movies were introduced in 1953. This rise of Manga strips, magazines with visual content, movies and TV took place at the time Tateishi was in junior-high and high school, thus influenced him greatly.
Tateishi's panoramic compositions are deeply rooted in Japanese art history. In the 17th and 18th century, Rakuchu-rakugai-zu genre screens depicting scenes of Kyoto were produced in large numbers (Fig. 1). Such screen paintings capturing the vibrancy of the city became a common ornament among feudal lords and wealthy families in provincial areas. During the Edo Period in the 19th century, ukiyo-e gained widespread popularity and their sophisticated techniques evolved to a great extent. The subjects of ukiyo-e ranged from beautiful women to tales, myths and the different time of seasons. With the evolution of techniques and the growth of demand, the number of ukiyo-e artists also rose. These artists produced many works of high quality and were often able to sustain themselves with their work, and were spurred by the desire to achieve popularity among admirers and publishers. During the Edo period, a great number of portraits of kabuki actors and geisha were produced and received favour among the general public (Fig. 2). ukiyo-e depicted a surreal world distant from reality. Portraits were characterized by exaggerated facial expressions and imposing compositions. In the Meiji Era that followed, colours and compositions grew in diversity. Subjects were often drawn from Japanese mythology, and dynamic colours and movement permeated popular culture. Such as Tsukioka Yoshitoshi's Yamata no Orochi is a famous myth God whom subduing the eight-headed serpent depicted in the 8th century book Nihon Shoki (Fig. 3).
Tateishi's panoramic paintings incorporate various imagery collages. This particular style pervaded in the Japanese surrealist movement, which was launched at the 16th edition of the Nikakai Exhibit in 1929. Harue Koga, Seiji Togo and Kigai Kawaguchi were among the leading artists of the movement. According to a critic at that time, the aim of surrealists was to employ the technique of photomontage with a lyrical style and a sophisticated, urban taste. Their perception of reality was visualized through the juxtaposition of architectural, mechanical and human images, which are central to 20th Century civilization. Harue Koga was influenced by Cubism and Paul Klee in the 1910s and 20s, and by 1929 he had achieved a high reputation (Fig. 4). He unfortunately died in 1933, at the young age of 38. After this, the surrealist movement in Japan explored various paths as it continued to evolve. Through Koga's influence, surrealism - a form of realism - achieved compositions with depth by introducing deep horizontal lines and fragments of mechanical civilization. Japanese surrealism had a major influence on Manga as well. The first Manga to introduce surrealistic expression was Nejishiki by Yoshiharu, published in the June 1968 issue of Garo. Surrealism subsequently influenced other artists and intellectuals. The Japanese surrealism movement greatly affected the methodology used to determine compositions and the way artists presented themes in their works.
Ôh-Edo Complexity (Lot 42), a late work by Tateishi, was intended as part of a series of larger works about the different eras of Japanese history, including Meiji Seiun-K?un, Taisho Goman-Roman, and Showa Suteki-Taiteki (1990). In the painting, the Edo period geisha and kabuki actors are positioned in the centre and at the lower left and right, forming a symmetrical visual balance. The white braided belt at the centre is customarily displayed at shrines or other places dedicated to gods, and it is also used by Sumo wrestlers. The larger than life golden toad at the centre was the subject of a pottery work by Tateishi in 1993. Tateishi viewed the toad as a symbol of power (Fig. 5). From left to right, the subject matter and narratives evolve gradually, shifts from static to dynamic and the colours also change from dark to bright, forming an energetic dialogue across the canvas.
In Wind God, Thunder God and the Shadow Fuji (Lot 43), the white tiger in the centre is the alter ego of Tateishi, leaping towards the viewer together with the gods of thunder and wind in the upper left and right. The gods of thunder and wind were common figures in Edo period screens; Tateishi subversively depicted the gods as mechanical and robot-like figures, bringing invisible forces to produce thunder and wind. This painting unfolds a story in a way we often see in Manga, the sophisticated composition in collages brings us back to the Japanese surrealist style in the 1930s. The pine tree that occupies the centre is reminiscent of the ones depicted in art of the Muromachi Era (14th to 16th century), a great example of Tateishi's influence from traditional Japanese aesthetics. The pictorial plane, depth of vision and layout of Tateishi's work are based on a combination of the various aspects in Japanese surrealist art. Looking at the balance of their compositions and their colour tones, Tateishi's style resembles that of contemporary artists such as Akira Yamaguchi and Takashi Murakami.
Tiger Tateishi is a surrealist master in creating a mesmerising visual and surreal imagery which is imbued deeply with the Japanese mythology and tales. His vivid portrayal of the different period and tales amalgamated together, creating a new form of dialogue that cross the boundary of time and space, a majestic vista that invites the viewer to submerge into his world of imagination.
Tateishi's subject matter and composition have a lot in common with the evolution of Japanese Manga in the 20th century. Until the 1950s, Japanese Manga consisted of lyrical images, but in the mid '50s story-driven Manga began to gain prominence. The works of Osamu Tezuka and Manga such as Moonlight Mask and Iron Man No. 28 were highly popular at that time. While these works retained strong ties to children's reading material prior to World War II in terms of theme, value and ideology, they embarked a departure in the way of unfolding stories visually. Post-war culture of the 1950s was strongly influenced by a wave of visualization in the various media. Teenage idols were featured on the covers of magazines like Myojo and Heibon, and a growing number of magazines incorporated colour photographs. Widescreen movies were introduced in 1953. This rise of Manga strips, magazines with visual content, movies and TV took place at the time Tateishi was in junior-high and high school, thus influenced him greatly.
Tateishi's panoramic compositions are deeply rooted in Japanese art history. In the 17th and 18th century, Rakuchu-rakugai-zu genre screens depicting scenes of Kyoto were produced in large numbers (Fig. 1). Such screen paintings capturing the vibrancy of the city became a common ornament among feudal lords and wealthy families in provincial areas. During the Edo Period in the 19th century, ukiyo-e gained widespread popularity and their sophisticated techniques evolved to a great extent. The subjects of ukiyo-e ranged from beautiful women to tales, myths and the different time of seasons. With the evolution of techniques and the growth of demand, the number of ukiyo-e artists also rose. These artists produced many works of high quality and were often able to sustain themselves with their work, and were spurred by the desire to achieve popularity among admirers and publishers. During the Edo period, a great number of portraits of kabuki actors and geisha were produced and received favour among the general public (Fig. 2). ukiyo-e depicted a surreal world distant from reality. Portraits were characterized by exaggerated facial expressions and imposing compositions. In the Meiji Era that followed, colours and compositions grew in diversity. Subjects were often drawn from Japanese mythology, and dynamic colours and movement permeated popular culture. Such as Tsukioka Yoshitoshi's Yamata no Orochi is a famous myth God whom subduing the eight-headed serpent depicted in the 8th century book Nihon Shoki (Fig. 3).
Tateishi's panoramic paintings incorporate various imagery collages. This particular style pervaded in the Japanese surrealist movement, which was launched at the 16th edition of the Nikakai Exhibit in 1929. Harue Koga, Seiji Togo and Kigai Kawaguchi were among the leading artists of the movement. According to a critic at that time, the aim of surrealists was to employ the technique of photomontage with a lyrical style and a sophisticated, urban taste. Their perception of reality was visualized through the juxtaposition of architectural, mechanical and human images, which are central to 20th Century civilization. Harue Koga was influenced by Cubism and Paul Klee in the 1910s and 20s, and by 1929 he had achieved a high reputation (Fig. 4). He unfortunately died in 1933, at the young age of 38. After this, the surrealist movement in Japan explored various paths as it continued to evolve. Through Koga's influence, surrealism - a form of realism - achieved compositions with depth by introducing deep horizontal lines and fragments of mechanical civilization. Japanese surrealism had a major influence on Manga as well. The first Manga to introduce surrealistic expression was Nejishiki by Yoshiharu, published in the June 1968 issue of Garo. Surrealism subsequently influenced other artists and intellectuals. The Japanese surrealism movement greatly affected the methodology used to determine compositions and the way artists presented themes in their works.
Ôh-Edo Complexity (Lot 42), a late work by Tateishi, was intended as part of a series of larger works about the different eras of Japanese history, including Meiji Seiun-K?un, Taisho Goman-Roman, and Showa Suteki-Taiteki (1990). In the painting, the Edo period geisha and kabuki actors are positioned in the centre and at the lower left and right, forming a symmetrical visual balance. The white braided belt at the centre is customarily displayed at shrines or other places dedicated to gods, and it is also used by Sumo wrestlers. The larger than life golden toad at the centre was the subject of a pottery work by Tateishi in 1993. Tateishi viewed the toad as a symbol of power (Fig. 5). From left to right, the subject matter and narratives evolve gradually, shifts from static to dynamic and the colours also change from dark to bright, forming an energetic dialogue across the canvas.
In Wind God, Thunder God and the Shadow Fuji (Lot 43), the white tiger in the centre is the alter ego of Tateishi, leaping towards the viewer together with the gods of thunder and wind in the upper left and right. The gods of thunder and wind were common figures in Edo period screens; Tateishi subversively depicted the gods as mechanical and robot-like figures, bringing invisible forces to produce thunder and wind. This painting unfolds a story in a way we often see in Manga, the sophisticated composition in collages brings us back to the Japanese surrealist style in the 1930s. The pine tree that occupies the centre is reminiscent of the ones depicted in art of the Muromachi Era (14th to 16th century), a great example of Tateishi's influence from traditional Japanese aesthetics. The pictorial plane, depth of vision and layout of Tateishi's work are based on a combination of the various aspects in Japanese surrealist art. Looking at the balance of their compositions and their colour tones, Tateishi's style resembles that of contemporary artists such as Akira Yamaguchi and Takashi Murakami.
Tiger Tateishi is a surrealist master in creating a mesmerising visual and surreal imagery which is imbued deeply with the Japanese mythology and tales. His vivid portrayal of the different period and tales amalgamated together, creating a new form of dialogue that cross the boundary of time and space, a majestic vista that invites the viewer to submerge into his world of imagination.