Introduction

March 2008 is the eleventh anniversary of the sudden death of Masuo Ikeda (1934–97), who applied his prodigious talent to a broad range of genres as he freewheeled through the second half of Japan’s twentieth century. His abilities came to the fore at an early age through printmaking, when he became the first Japanese artist to be honoured with a solo exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art, New York (1965), and won the Grand Prize in Printmaking at the Venice Biennale (1966). In 1997, he was awarded the 77th Akutagawa Award—Japan’s most prestigious literary award—for his novel, Offering in the Aegean, and the following year he famously picked up the megaphone to direct the novel’s film adaptation. Ikeda has built a reputation as a printmaker, painter, illustrator, sculptor, Akutagawa award novelist, essayist, Ukiyo-e expert, screenwriter, movie director, TV celebrity, and ceramicist, but relatively few people are aware that he spent his later years focusing on ceramic art.
Despite the extent to which he was acclaimed as a printmaker, only some 1,000 print works remain. In contrast, he left over 3,000 ceramic art works. After taking up ceramics, classical Japanese art, such as works by the Rimpa artists, brought new inspiration to his practice, including his best known ceramic work, the Heart Sutra series.
This exhibition attempts a comprehensive review of the surprisingly unknown oeuvre of this rare artist who was pushing the envelope of art throughout his life. Including newly discovered works and unexhibited works and other items, it reveals the breadth of his creative output, including his work in areas as varied as oil painting, watercolours, collage, printmaking, sculpture, ceramic art, and calligraphy.


Pagoda 14 ceramic　1994		Her Conversation lithograph on paper　1970

In his studio in Tokyo, 33-year-old Masuo Ikeda standing in front of Monroe's poster
(courtesy The Mainichi Newspapers)