HONG KONG.- The Asia Society Hong Kong Center is hosting the first major solo exhibition of renowned Japanese artist Yoshitomo Nara in Hong Kong from March 6 – July 26, 2015. With tremendous support from The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, The Hong Kong Jockey Club Presents – Life is Only One: Yoshitomo Nara exhibition is free for the public to enjoy, including a selection of Nara’s most evocative works, public lectures and educational programs to bring attendees closer to one of the world’s most celebrated contemporary artists.
The title of the exhibition comes from the Nara painting Life is Only One! and reflects an abiding theme of the artist’s work. The juxtaposition of the innocent-looking girl and the human skull on the canvas prompts us to contemplate on the big question about the fleeting nature of life. But what does this provocative subject mean to the artist and to us? Through a wide range of mediums from paintings, sketches, photographs, sculptures to mixed media installations, the artist unveils his open-ended interpretation of life. This exhibition showcases works from Nara’s extensive oeuvre in the past two decades – together with 3 new paintings, 17 new drawings, and some recent puppy sculptures created specifically for this show.
“The Asia Society Hong Kong Center is delighted to bring Yoshitomo Nara’s thought-provoking work to Hong Kong in this exhibition. Our collaboration with this most beloved and accessible artist helps us to further our educational aim of encouraging creative expression and nurturing an appreciation of the arts in our community,” said S. Alice Mong, Executive Director of Asia Society Hong Kong Center.
With the staunch support from The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, the Asia Society Hong Kong Center can offer visitors free admission to this exhibition as well as a series of concurrent education programs. This contribution from the Trust follows the Former Explosive Magazine revitalization, a heritage preservation initiative which created a dynamic complex allowing ASHK to extend its educational programs to the larger community.
From drawings on envelops and cardboards that reveal Yoshitomo Nara' s spontaneous mind, to the photographs from the Sakhalin series that capture the stories on the remote Russian island, the works displayed in the exhibition showcase the artist’s creativity in different, and sometimes unconventional, mediums. Another highlight of the exhibition is puppy sculptures to be installed in the outdoor area in the center while some will be placed near an eye-catching sculpture Fountain of Life, a large white teacup with stacked heads that seem to cry tears. The purity of the work’s glossy white finish and the surreal subject matter are at once sweet and eerie.
