日本語は英語の後に続きます。
A gentle woodblock by Gen YAMANAKA
The Tolman Collection welcomes a new- to our audience – but otherwise long-established artist with a forty-year career - Gen Yamanaka (b.1954, Fukushima). It is hard to believe that in all this time we had never met this well-known printmaker.
Yamanaka graduated from one of the top art schools in Japan “Geidai” (Tokyo University of the Arts) with a master’s degree in 1980. He first studied oil painting but after taking a course with Tadashige Ono (1909-1990), one of the leading woodblock artists of the postwar period, turned his attention to printmaking.
His imagery is subtle and poetic. Looking at his pieces, which range from abstraction to representational shapes, one feels no need for a concrete explanation. The delicate colors are soothing and tranquil. His artistic practice ranges from paintings, watercolors, etchings, and woodblocks to drawings and sculpture and finds endless possibilities for his imagination.
The Tolman Collection presents 26 pieces, dating from 2002 on. Mr. Yamanaka uses 3 to 4 blocks and 7 separate colors at the most. His woodblocks are steeped in Japanese classic culture. Their very elusiveness represents the concept of Japanese beauty to me.
Please enjoy and pick what you think are the best works for you. We will be looking forward to hearing from you soon.
Daisuke Maruoka
| 
