Press release
August 23, 2021

Shibunkaku presents

Suda Kokuta: Abstractions
August 23 (Monday)—September 4 (Saturday), 2021
As this summer is coming to a close, Shibunkaku Online Shop presents an exploration ofa realm within imagination: the abstract world of Suda Kokuta (1906–1990). Suda, whogarnered steadily growing recognition in Japan and internationally throughout thepostwar period, has been a fixture of the Kansai art scene since his move there in theearly 1940s. Well-connected to other artists, including Yoshihara Jirō, Morita Shiryū,
Hasegawa Saburō or Tsutaka Waichi, Suda nevertheless was an individualist who went
his own way (declining Yoshihara’s offer to join Gutai, for instance).
This exhibition centers on Suda’s abstract works, an approach that the painter engaged
in from around 1948/9 to the late 1970s. The dated works in this exhibition range from1959 to 1965, and seems likely that most, though perhaps not all, of the featured works
stem from during or around the 1960s. Suda’s abstractions are not easy to categorize
but it is telling the in many, if not most, of them he goes against the notion of painting asa flat projection space. Rather, that flatness needs to be challenged, which Suda does byeither applying his materials in thick impasto layers, or adding objects such as pebbles orsmall stones to create three-dimensional surfaces.
Another technique he employs to great effect is embossing: objects are pressed against
the paper ground, often from the back, resulting in round or rectangular impressions andbulges that Suda arranges into intricate patterns, sometimes even pinching holes into
the paper (again, often from the back so that the torn paper projects towards the viewer).
Suda exploits the particularities of the material, as in the case of paper which lends itself
to perforation or deformation. The three-dimensional aspect is also used with oil colors
that allow for layers that can be built up or scraped off again, or for the integration ofunusual materials. In his abstract works, Suda thus created not so much paintings butthings—vaguely three-dimensional objects that neither represent a reflection of theoutside world, nor the image of the artist’s inner being, but objects that add to the worldin their own right—in being nothing but themselves.
About Suda Kokuta (1906–1990)
Painter from Saitama Prefecture. Suda was a prolific participant at major national
exhibitions such as Bunten and Nitten but also exhibited internationally. His
representational as well as abstract paintings are characterized by a vigorous style,vibrantly distinct and recognizable. Suda’s work extends to calligraphy and ceramics. He
received the Culture Award of the Kodansha publishing corporation for his illustrations for
Shiba Ryōtarō’s On the Highways. Member of the Kokuga art association

About Shibunkaku
Established in 1937 in Kyoto, Shibunkaku offers a unique sense of aesthetics andappreciation of art that transcending cultural and geographical borders, periods, andgenres. Our expertise is rooted in early modern and modern Japanese fine art with anemphasis on calligraphy and painting. In addition, we have expanded into postwar andcontemporary art, aiming to count among the leading galleries in Japanese art of highest
quality and enduring art historical value. Besides the main gallery in Kyoto, andShibunkaku owns a space in Ginza, Tokyo.

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