Art with a side of quirk

Tokyo Art Fair checks all the Serious International Art Exhibition boxes, but this year’s artists went above and beyond in displaying that unique Japanese mix of fabulous craftsmanship and quirky worldview.

Like Tetsuya Noguchi’s spoof on famous Western general statues and portraits of wealthy worthies…

Or Kawai Tokuhiro’s Byzantine-looking icon, executed with the care usually reserved for madonna triptychs…but with cats.

Cats were elevated beyond cuteness to god-like status in a number of artists’ works this year, from Sawako Kobayashi’s ceramic cat sitting zazen and manifesting its inner ladybird…

to these whimsical clay pieces by Taro Tasaki, with truly excellent names like “Pirate Cat God Warrior”…

and “Exorcist Cat Wearing Shaman Hat.”

There was also a fine selection of artists exploring iconic Japanese popular culture themes, like these “near future” clay figures by Hiroto Kitagawa

And every boy’s favorite pet, the kabutomushi stag beetle, transformed by Anjin Abe’s eye into something loftier…

And of course there were uniquely Japanese manipulations of materials that go beyond what ordinary mortals might do with them, like Tomo Koizumi’s paintings, which look like fluffy ruffle throws at first…

…until you get closer and realize they are meticulously handpainted lengths of fabric, gathered into a mesmerizing whole.

Tokyo Art Fair is finished for this year, but it happens every spring, so if you’re going to be in Tokyo in March, it’s well worth a visit!

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