K U M A Katsuyuki Shinohara |
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1942 | Born in Sapporo, Hokkaido. Family moved to Muroran, an iron town in Hokkaido. |
1943 | 1943 Hovered between life and death because of diphtheria. As a result, lost his sense of smell and can hear only through his right ear. |
1960 | Ran away from home and moved to Tokyo, before he
finished high school. Entered Musashino Art College and specialized in graphic design. Nicknamed KUMA (which means 'Bear' in Japanese) by classmates. |
1963 | Quit school and worked as a graphic designer at a design company. |
1967 | 1967 Established himself as an independent, picture
book artist. As he didn't enjoy office work, symbolically shaved his head. However, as ends were difficult to meet, often worked as a laborer. |
1973-1979 | Met Kara Juro who was the leader of a drama company, Joukyou Gekijou (The Situation Theater). Drama was a key means to understand underground culture in the 60's and 70's in Japan. Juro selected Kuma as an artist to draw posters for his dramas. Kuma's posters gained acclaim and as a result he was entrusted with producing stage art. |
1981 | 1981 Recognized as an author, especially his essay
"Life is Diamond",which created a sensation. This and other essays were written in a new genre and expressed Kuma's uniqueness. |
1986 | 1986 Encountered steel at the sight of a wrecked building
and this medium focused his talents on creating sculpture from scrap iron. First sculpture exhibition was held at Spiral Garden, Tokyo. |
1987 | 1987 Opened 'KUMA'S FACTORY', as a base for his art work. |
1988 | 1988 Man from the Sky' (made with scrap iron, paint) erected at Kinshi Park, Tokyo. |
1989 | 1989 'The Messenger from The Blue' (iron, paint)
created at a shipyard and displayed in Kinoe, Hiroshima. |
1990 | Created 'Iron Bar' (iron) which furnished Bar
Materio, Tokyo. Fabricated 'Iron D.J.Booth' (scrap iron) and furnished Club Genius, Hokkaido. Created 'Marine Blue in Blue Marine' (iron) on Cayman Island, West Indies. |
1991 | Designed and displayed 'Begin the Beijing' (iron) at Tiananmen Square, Beijing, China. |
1992 | 'Spiral Fire' torch (iron, paint) designed for the First Annual Special Olympics for mentally handicapped people at Komazawa Stadium, Tokyo. |
1993 | 'A Wanderer' (iron, paint) sculpted at a shipyard
and erected at the NHK local broadcasting center in Hokkaido. 'Sky Seed' (iron) installed at Port Square, Chiba. 'The Wind of Odyssey' (iron) and 'Earthy Gratitude' (scrap iron) in Inner Mongolia. |
1994 | 'Wind Harp' (iron) erected at Rover Omu in Mukawa,
Yamanashi. 'For Gathering Rain Drops' (iron, stainless steel, paint) made at River Mogami in Yamagata. 'Potato Ground' (iron) conceptualized and installed in a potato field in Hokkaido. 'Space Egg' was invented from scrap iron, gathered while driving to Dharmsala in India, for meeting with H. H. Dalai Lama. |
1995 | Built a huge factory with three fusion furnaces
for melting and casting iron objects d'art. |
1996 | Inspired by casting, attempted to create huge glass
sculptures by casting. 'Being Nowhere, Being Everywhere' (iron, glass, paint) established in Kochi. 'Rolling Iron' (iron, stainless steel, paint) assembled in Kumamoto. Designed 24 doors 'Assemble No.1-24' (brass) and furnished a newly built apartment in Tokyo. |
1997 | 'Old Man from Aqua' (glass, scrap iron) installed
at Lake Fiskars, Finland. 'Vital Scissors' (iron) was set up at a clothing company in Okayama. |
1998 | 'Tree of Wind' (iron, glass) installed in the Sahara at Et du Tenere, Niger; televised by Fuji broadcasting in Japan. Kuma lived for ten days in the desert to devise it. The TV documentary which captured his work on film was awarded a prize by Japanese broadcasting. |
1999 | Designed and manufactured 'Angel Bell' from the
order by Takeshi Kitano, for his film "Kikujiro" 'Just Landed' (iron, glass) installed in Chiba. |
2000 | Composed 'Kuma Blue' and created large glass works
which were displayed at Gangoji Temple. This is a UNESCO World Heritage site in Nara. 'Time Wall' (glass, iron, stone) designed and erected at Mt. Goken in Kagawa. 'Iron Horse' (iron); 25m/6000kgs, created at Nagaragawa Stadium, Gifu. |
2001 | 'Majestic Power' (glass, stainless steel) installed
at Takasaki Kenkou Fukushi University, Gunma. Devised 'Water/Sky/Light' (ceramic, glass) exhibited at the town library, Gunma. |
2002 |
'Tree of Water' (iron, paint) rooted at River Omu in Mukawa, Yamanashi. |
2003 | The exhibition 'La Luce Circolante' ('The Circulated
Light')was held at the same time 50th International Art Exhibition La Biennale in Venice. Devised huge sculpture with iron and glass in the courtyard in a church with a long history; the glass beamed prismatic light of the sun and the spectrum was moving in the courtyard along with the sun. At 'OPEN2003' in Venice, Kuma represented Japan, exhibited 'Immature Period' (iron). |
2004 | 'SKY LINES' (glass, stone) installed at Kaikoma-Bridge
in Yamanashi. 'No Moon, No Man' (fabric of mosquito net, bamboo) exhibited in a park in Nara. Donated 'Evidence of Wind' (stone), 'Evidence of Rainbow' (stone, glass) to a hospital for the handicapped children. 'Play with the universe' (stone, iron, glass, paint) installed at Kotohira-Park in Kagawa. |
2005 | 'SWEET ENERGY' (stone, glass, wood) installed at
a public hospital in Yamanashi. Robert C. Morgan wrote an article featuring Kuma; 'Sculpture as transcultural theater' in the March issue of 'Sculpture'. The exhibition 'Sign of Paradise', curated by Robert C. Morgan was held at Mike Weiss Gallery in New York. |
2006 | 'Mr. Blue longs to be the sky, will turn into
H2O'; sculpture made with 3.6 tons of water iced under minus 30 degrees,
installed at a field in Hokkaido, which is the coldest place in Japan. It
melted completely in the middle of March. 'Cube of Wind'; installation 200 cubes (fabric of mosquito net, bamboo), at Heijokyu-seki, a World Heritage site in Nara. 'Nara-Ball' (5 tons of branches, wire) displayed at a park in Nara. |
EXHIBITION
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2002 | [KUMA / a proud passenger] in MUDIMA Foundation / Milan, Italy |
2003 | [La Luce Circolante] /St. Francesco, Venice (contemporary
with the 50th Biennale Venice) [KUMA] in Galleria Blanshaert / Milan, Italy [OPEN 2003] International Sculpture Exhibition in Venice (group exhibition) [Designer's Christmas Tree 2003] / Paris (group exhibition) |
2005 | 2005 [The Sign of Paradise] in Mike Weiss Gallery / New York |
篠原勝之・KUMA |
1942年、札幌に生まれ鉄の街・室蘭に育つ。グラフィックデザイナー、絵本作家、状況劇場のポスター、舞台美術を手がけた後、エッセイ「人生はデーヤモンド」で注目を集める。1986年、〔KUMA'S
FACTORY〕設立。 廃鉄の溶接に始まり、鋳物鉄、ガラス、土、石などを素材に光・風・水・土や自然が放つエネルギーに呼応するダイナミックな造形を国内外で精力的に創作し続けている。「フォルムだけが全てではなく、創る過程や対峙する自然、人、時間の流れも作品。」の真骨頂である"ゲージツ"はマンハッタン、モンゴル、サハラ砂漠、インド、フィンランドなど国境を越え、「地球に目印を付ける。」独自の創作スタイルを貫いている。2002年、欧州コンテンポラリーアートのムーブメントを支えるMUDIMA財団の招待でミラノにて個展を開催。「現代美術の流れを変えるかも知れない作家の出現」と関係者の注目を浴びる。以降、ベニス、パリ、(2003)ニューヨーク(2005)など海外でも発表の機会を得、作品の無国籍な力強さと圧倒的な存在感が評価されている。 |
常設作品
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