TAIPEI DANGDAI

For the second edition of Taipei Dangdai NUKAGA GALLERY proposes to exhibit works by artists from the Japanese postwar collective Gutai, including Sadamasa Motonaga and Saburo Murakami, as well as New York-based artists Nir Hod and Tony Matelli. It goes without saying that material, texture, and color are essential to discourse on art. The artists displayed here masterfully command these elements, allowing their works to transcend generations, ask universal questions, and bring aesthetic matters to light.

Jiro Yoshihara, the founding proponent of Gutai, makes the following statement in his manifesto:
“Gutai Art does not alter material. Gutai Art imparts life to material. Gutai Art does not distort material. In Gutai Art, the human spirit and material shake hands with each other while keeping their distance.”
As declared here, material—together with the textures and colors born from that material—is the chief concern of Gutai artists. Sadamasa Motonaga drips paint over his canvases like flowing water and sometimes inlays stones to bring unique modes of expression to his paintings. Saburo Murakami, known for performances in which he charges through and tears large sheets of paper, creates a clash between material and body in order to instantaneously set free the space and time trapped within the form of material we call “paintings”.

Nir Hod employs chromium, acid, and chemical reactions on canvases to achieve original, mirror-like textures. His work engages the viewers to see their reflection and make them a part of the composition, encouraging them to appreciate curiosity and narcissism. Tony Matelli produces three-dimensional artworks that are full of humor and sarcasm, ephemerality, and metaphors of life and death. Fresh fruits on a classical sculpture, for instance, placed as though they mock the viewers’ perception, are made out of long-lasting materials like copper and polyurethane. Creating textures unimaginable from the appearance of his work and the materials used, Matelli manipulates the perception of the physical laws of objects and preconception of time and matter.

In this art fair, NUKAGA GALLERY will be presenting about twenty artworks, both two dimensional and three dimensional, from artists mentioned here. We look forward to meeting you at our booth.

NUKAGA GALLERY即將參展2020年1月的台北當代藝術博覽會，將以material/texture/color為展覽主軸，展出日本戰後重要藝術團體具體派藝術家元永定正、村上三郎, 以及以紐約為活動據點的兩位當代藝術家 Tony Matelli(湯尼 麥特里)以及Nir Hod (尼爾 霍德)之作品。這四位藝術家皆將material/texture/color等三種元素以各自不同的材質和表現手法融匯進作品裡並巧妙地掌握了這些元素，他們的作品不但跨越了時空的界線，更帶領觀者探索蘊含其中的藝術含意。

具體美術由其領導人吉原治良提倡「具體藝術家並非試圖改變物質，而是賦予物質生命力。具體藝術並非改變物質，具體美術是精神與物質於兩種對立的情況下從中找到平衡」。物質以及由其衍生出的質地以及色彩才是具體派藝術家們所關心的。元永定正利用日本傳統繪畫技法Tarashikomi 將具有流動特質的顏料滴於畫布上，有時更撒上小碎石等種種創新的創作手法都證明了其作品的獨特性。村上三郎則是將比自己身形還要大的紙並排，再由中間穿過的表演藝術而聞名，其主要傳達的概念為，當身體穿越過某種物體產生的衝突，會同時釋放封存於繪畫中的時間與空間。

尼爾 霍德利用鉻及酸性液體產生的化學反應，再利用其特殊手法進行類似拋光的技術，令畫布呈現猶如鏡面一般的特殊效果，觀者鑑賞的同時，猶如站於鏡面前投射出自己的影子，但卻又並非清楚完整，因此勾起了深藏於大眾心理的好奇心，以及想一探究竟的動機。湯尼 麥特里的雕塑作品，則是以幽默的方式探討物質的即逝性並暗喻萬物的生與死， 在看似古代雕刻作品上，放置極為反差且代表新鮮的水果，而最令人意想不到的是水果是利用銅以及特殊胺基酸塗料等材質所打造，因此完全顛覆了一般人對於作品的觸覺想像，此概念不僅僅推翻了物理法則，更進一步探討人們對於時間與空間概念的先入為主課題。

本次展覽將展出以上四位藝術家約二十件作品，期待各位蒞臨。