Hisachika Takahashi
Introduction

Executed in 1966–1967 by Japanese artist
Hisachika Takahashi, the seven paintings presented here form a nearly complete re-creationof his solo show at Wide White Space, Antwerp,
1967.
Active from 1966 to 1976, Wide White Space isrenowned as a legendary gallery that focusedon cutting-edge conceptual art practice of thetime. There is a comprehensive book on its
ten-year activity, and when I was flipping its
pages at a bookshop in Tokyo, I came across anunfamiliar Japanese name, Hisachika Takahashi.
Showing no photos, it only indicated that thisartist had had a show at the gallery in 1967 withten “Untitled” oil paintings. Out of curiosity, I
decided to research more on Hisachika and hiswork during my coming stay in Belgium.
Before my departure, I consulted the Internet.
From the few results I hit, including a blog postby curator Daniel Baumann, I came to knowthat Hisachika had been deeply connected tothe art scene. First, he was an assistant of Lucio
Fontana in Milan (they even collaborated on apainting together), and then again assistant toRobert Rauschenberg for many years in NewYork, while occasionally serving sushi at FOOD,
the restaurant run by Gordon Matta-Clark. I
was also led to images of this mysterious artist’s
own works in various forms made and exhibited
during the 1970s. Above all, the best news wasthat it seemed that the artist was still alive.
Soon after I arrived in Belgium, a friend introduced me to Anny de Decker, who had run WideWhite Space with her husband, the artist Bernd
Lohaus. The fact that they did not even takephotos of Hisachika’s installation in his 1967
show was disappointing, but Anny then told me
she had kept six of the ten originally-exhibited
paintings, with another work held by a collector.
In the dim light of Anny’s warehouse in Antwerp,
as the flower patterns on his canvases seemed
to begin to glow (I later came to know he wasone of the first painters who used fluorescentpaints), I made up my mind: I would like to have
his exhibition tour, to time travel in a sense, fromAntwerp 1967 to Brussels 2013, in order to makehis works re-interact with people’s perception
for the first time in 45 years, and to finally takephotos of the installation.
Several weeks later, with the help of Hisachika’sfriend who was in contact with Daniel, I met
the artist in Paris, who generously accepted myoffer. He told me many episodes from his exciting
life, and about his ideas regarding art. The mostimpressive fact for me was, however, that his
mother was a master of Ikabana, the Japanesetraditional art of flower arrangement. I like toconsider his paintings not only in the historicalcontext with the gallery’s renowned program,or in comparison with his contemporaries suchas Daan van Golden, Konrad Lueg, and Andy
Warhol, but also as an experiment where allover abstraction met Hisachika’s own aesthetics
inspired by Ikebana and kimono.
Above all, the most personal factor for me
in doing this project is that I see myself in
Hisachika. First, my current situation is similar
to his in 1967, as a Japanese artist who is juststarting his artistic career in Europe. Secondly,
the more I learn about his later works, the more
I feel our artistic areas of concern overlap. We
both question artist’s authority and roles throughour practice as a mediator rather than a creator(those patterns on his early paintings, whichwere in fact simply transferred from embossed
handy rollers for home wall decoration, werealready a sign). So, for me, re-organizing his firstexhibition in Belgium, which doubles as my firstexhibition in the same country, ultimately canbe seen as a way of translating our identification
with one another into reality.
I am very happy to be able to present his show
here in Brussels.
Yuki Okumura
15.05.2013

Hisachika Takahashi
Credits

Hisachika Takahashi
16.05 – 30.05.2013
CuratorYuki Okumura
Coordination
Devrim Bayar
Registrar
Ari Hiroshige
Installation
Fredji Hayebin
Documentation
Shogo Matsushiro
Complementary Programme
Artist Talk by Hisachika Takahashi
15.05.2013, 19:30
Black Light Night Party
29.05.2013, 22:00
Special thanks toDaniel Baumann, Anny de Decker, Isi Fiszman,
Agathe Gonnet, Stella Lohaus, Mihnea Mircan,
Willem Oorebeek, Jeffrey Ian Rosen,
Misako Rosen, Drik Snauwaert,
Micha Spierenburg, Ivan Terestchenko,
Simon Thompson
In collaboration withMori Art Museum, Tokyo
Curator supported byOverseas Study Program for Artists, Agency for
Cultural Affairs, Japanese Government

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