YANAGIHARA Yoshitatsu Memorial Gallery
Yanagihara Yoshitatsu, 1910, Kobe -2004, Tokyo
Yanagihara Yoshitatsu is one of the most important representational sculptors in postwar Japan, and he enjoys a high reputation in the art world.
Yanagihara, who originally hails from Kobe, began by studying Japanese-style painting, but he decided to become a sculptor after seeing photographs of the work of Rodin and Bourdelle. He studied sculpture at the Tokyo School of Fine Arts and started showing his works at exhibitions hosted by the Society for National Painting and the Shin Seisaku School Association. Unfortunately however, almost all of his early sculpture was lost in a fire after World War Ⅱ. Bust of Mr.Kakuji Yamamoto (1940) is an only extant work. This work, with busts realized soon after the end of the World War Ⅱ, shows delicate expression without exaggeration.
In 1951, he was profoundly impressed when he saw the work of several French sculptors in a exhibition hosted by the Salon de Mai in Tokyo, and this helped encourage him to go to France in 1953. He respected plastic ideal of French modern sculpture since Rodin, but at the same time seeked to build up a sculptural vision peculiar as a Japanese.
After returning to Japan in 1957, he produced numerous sculptures of women, crows, and pigeons. These works reflect Yanagihara's deep insight into nature, and they show a superior ability to produce precise, sensitive forms with a degree of tension.
In Yanagihara’s works nude figure occupies an important position. His nude tells sculptor’s intention to seek after the natural laws in which human body indicates how parts of body move, bring forth equilibrium, and keep balance with gravity in some posture.
By the way a title Song of the Dog connotes his humiliation, discontent, self-scorn and emptiness which Yanagihara felt after the lost war, and simultaneously points his position as a sculpture to keep the mind of resistance.
It is 1966 when Yanagihara made his first crow. On an occasion to make a monument in order to be kind to animals, he became very attached to crows.
Figures of crow are based upon Yanagihara’s tender mind. Moreover they show vigorous forces of life of wild animal and sense of volume proper to sculpture.
Sculptures of pigeon are Yanagihara’s most popular works. For a long time he bred fantails and came into intimate contact with them.
He formed a warm attachment for pigeons living in the same world as he, and by representing them he continued to confirm his own behavior living on the same earth according to the same natural laws.
Yanagihara’s drawing amounts to a vast quantity. There can be perceived quality of Yanagihara’s recognition of space which regards sculpture as art of tactile space.
Yanagihara tells that after drawing repetitiously he proceeds to sculpture. For him drawing is exercise in order to comprehend the natural laws. Pictorial elements such as composition of surface nor depiction of detail are not important. One can say Yanagihara’s drawing is not but sculpture on paper.
Formerly Mie prefectural Art Museum held Yanagihara's retrospective exhibition on 1996 and a small exhbition of his drawings on 1999. On the twentieth anniversary of the opening of our museum, Yanagihara Yoshitatsu bequeathed us over seventy sculptures and several hundred sketches that document the entire span of his career. In order to share these wonderful pieces with people, we have started displaying them in the museum since the 1st November, 2003.
| November 2003 | |
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| March 2003 | |
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| December 2004 | |
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| December 2005 | |
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| December 2006 | |
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| October 2007 | |
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| February 2008 | |
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| July 2009 | |
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| Hall B: | |
| Special feature 【Sculpture of TATEHATA Kakuzo】 | April 17-August 31, 2008 |
| Extended installation of the exhibition MOTONAGA Sadamasa
featuring 【Background of Motonaga's Creation】 |
April 11- May 31, 2009 |
| Special feature 【Miquel Navarro's Ciudad centinela】
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June 30 - September 27, 2009 |
| Special feature 【Brick Sculpture of ISHII Atsuo
- between West Wind and East Wind】 |
October 24 - December 6, 2009 |
| Special feature NAKAZATO Katsuhito's Photography【ULTRA -Nightscape of Critical Area】 | December 23, 2009 -February 14, 2010 |
| Hall A: Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | |
| 1st term | April 1-June 27, 2010 |
| 2nd term | June 29 - September 26, 2010 |
| 3rd term | September 28 - December 26, 2010 |
| 4th term | January 4 - March 21, 2011 |
| Hall B: | |
| Drawings of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | April 17 - July 25, 2010 |
| Special feature 【Toya Shigeo】 | August 7 - October 11, 2010 |
| Special feature 【Yuhara Kazuo's Sculpture and Drawing】 | January 4 - March 21, 2011 |
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| Hall A: Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | |
| 1st term | March 22 - June 26, 2011 |
| 2nd term | June 28 - September 25, 2011 |
| 3rd term | September 27 - December 25, 2011 |
| 4th term | December 27, 2011 - March 18, 2012 |
| Hall B: | |
| Drawings and Sculptures of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | March 22 - June 26, 2011 |
| Sharpen your wit! Shigeo Fukuda Super-Retrospective | July 9 - September 4, 2011 |
| Leiko Ikemura: Transfiguration | November 8, 2011 - January 22, 2012 |
| Hall A: | |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu, 1st term | March 19 - July 8, 2012 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu, 2nd term | July 10 - September 30, 2012 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu, 3rd term | October 2 - December 16, 2012 |
| Exhibition of Motonaga Sadamasa | December 18, 2011 - March 17, 2013 |
| Hall B: | |
| Drawings and Sculptures of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | March 19 - July 8, 2012 |
| Sculptures of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | december 18, 2012 - March 17, 2013 |
| Hall A: | |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu, 1st term | April 1- June 30, 2013 |
| Exhibition of Motonaga Sadamasa | July 3 - September 8, 2013 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu, 3rd term | September 10 - December 23, 2013 |
| Hall B: | |
| Exhibition of Yashima Masaaki | March 20 - June 30, 2013 |
| Works of YanagiharaYoshitatsu | July 2 - September 8, 2013 |
| Feature Exhibition: Miquel Navarro, Spanish Contemporary Art from the collection | September 10 - December 23, 2013 |
2014
| Hall A: | |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | March 18 - June 22, 2014 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | June 24 - September 21, 2014 |
| ASANO Yae -Poetics of Lines | October 1- December 21, 2014 |
| New Wave Artists in Mie 2015 | January 4 - March 29, 2015 |
| Hall B: | |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | March 18 - June 22, 2014 |
| KOTANI Takeshi | June 24 - September 21, 2014 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | September 23 - December 21, 2014 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | December 23 - March 29, 2015 |
2015
| Hall A: | |
| SHIMADA Ayuko | April 4 - June 21, 2015 |
| Permanent Collection 2nd term 2015 | June 30 - September 27, 2015 |
| Julio González Retrospective: Master of Iron Sculpture | February 9 - April 10, 2016 |
| Hall B: | |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | March 31 - June 21, 2015 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | June 27 - September 27, 2015 |
| Julio González Retrospective: Master of Iron Sculpture | February 9 - April 10, 2016 |
2016
| Hall A: | |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | April 23 - June 26, 2016 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | June 28 - September 25, 2016 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | September 27 - December 25, 2016 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | January 4 - February 19, 2017 |
| Yanagihara Yoshitatsu -Molds and Bronze | February 21 - June 25, 2017 |
| Hall B: | |
| Linda Dennis Exhibition On Touch: Extend |
April 23 - June 26, 2016 |
| Artists from Marunuma Art Park | July 9 - September 25, 2016 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | September 27 - December 25, 2016 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | January 4 - February 19, 2017 |
| Yanagihara Yoshitatsu -Molds and Bronze | February 21 - June 25, 2017 |
2017
| Hall A: | |
| Yanagihara Yoshitatsu -Molds and Bronze | February 21 - June 25, 2017 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | June 27 - September 24, 2017 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | September 26 - December 24, 2017 |
| IMAMURA Yukio | January 4 - March 25, 2018 |
| Hall B: | |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | April 1 - June 25, 2017 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | June 27 - September 24, 2017 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | September 26 - December 24, 2017 |
| IMAMURA Yukio | January 4 - March 25, 2018 |
2018
| Hall A: | |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | April 1 - July 1, 2018 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | July 3 - September 24, 2018 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | September 27 - December 2, 2018 |
| Yanagihara Yoshitatsu -Bronze and Molds | December 11 - March 24, 2019 |
| Hall B: | |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | April 1 - July 1, 2018 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | July 3 - September 24, 2018 |
| TSUCHISHIMA Toshio | September 27 - December 2, 2018 |
| Yanagihara Yoshitatsu -Bronze and Molds | December 11 - March 24, 2019 |
2019
| Hall A+B: | |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | April 2 - June 23, 2019 |
| Nakatani Michiko: In their own little cosmos | July 6 - September 29, 2019 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | October 5 - December 22, 2019 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | December 24 - March 29, 2020 |
2020
| Hall A: | |
| Akioka Miho -Wind Scape- | 1 April - 30 August, 2020 |
| Hall B: | |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | April 1 - June 28, 2020 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | June 30 - August 30, 2020 |
| Hall A+B: | |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | September 2 - December 20, 2020 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | January 5 - March 21, 2021 |
2021
| Hall A: | |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | March 23 - August 19, 2021 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | August 21 - December 12, 2021 |
| Hall B: | |
| Feature Exhibition: Miquel Navarro | March 23 - August 9, 2021 |
| MIQUEL BARCELÓ | August 14 - October 24, 2021 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | December 14, 2021 - March 21, 2022 |
2022
| Hall A+B: | |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | March 23 - June 26, 2022 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | June 28 - September 4, 2022 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | November 15 - December 11, 2022 |
| Hall A: | |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | September 6 - November 13, 2022 |
| Hall B: | |
| Permanent Collection 3rd term 2022 | September 6 - November 13, 2022 |
2023
| Hall A+B: | |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | March 24 - July 2, 2023 |
| Works of Yanagihara Yoshitatsu | July 4 - October 22, 2023 |