Art Exhibitions
Noritaka Tatehana:Refashioning Beauty

Fall 2019

Noritaka Tatehana:Refashioning Beauty

E M BR AC I NG A L EGAC Y

T I M E LE S S A P P EA L OF C R A F T S M A N S H I P

In his first-ever North American solo exhibition
Portland Japanese Garden presented the art of
Noritaka Tatehana. With works created especiallyfor this exhibition, Tatehana enchants throughhis use of refined Japanese craftsmanship thatepitomizes sophistication and beauty.

Japan’s art history is long and distinguishedwith celebrated traditions of form, design, andcraftsmanship. Most often, Japanese art centersaround a deep understanding and reverence ofnature and natural beauty in both subject andmateriality. But along with the well-respected,admired, and studied artistic traditions of Japan
can come overwhelming feelings of constraint
and burden for a contemporary artist tied to itslegacy. An artist may feel trapped by the weight ofhistorical precedence.

Born in 1985, Tatehana grew up in Kamakura,a medieval capital on Japan’s Pacific coast.
Surrounded by renowned temples and shrines,
his childhood was filled with daily exposure tohistory and art. It is in this context that he firstbegan designing clothing and shoes despite a lack offormal education in the field. Following his creative
impulses and an appreciation for Japan’s rich legacyof craftsmanship, he went on to attend Tokyo
National University of the Arts, where he studied
the declining craft of textile dyeing and weaving.

2ART EXHIBITIONS

As visual and cultural experience has become truly
global, social and geographic distinctions haveblurred, often losing significance and meaning.
This environment allows artists to willfully breakfrom the constraints of historical narratives thatcame before them. Rather than shun the seeminglyrestrictive traditions of Japanese art and craft,
Tatehana embraces them by sampling, altering, andrepackaging cultural symbols to create dynamic
works for the modern audience.

I am concerned about the preservation of
traditional Japanese craft and culture; thesuccession of critical skills and techniques

CON T E M P OR A RY R E I N T E R P R ETAT I ON S

that are handed down from generation to

Tatehana appropriates signs of elegance andrefinement from their original historical contextand amplifies their meaning in his art. Heemphasizes the practice of takumi (匠), or “mastercraftsmanship,” grounding his work in thevirtuosity of execution. In Heel-less Shoes, the raised
platform sandals, which denote the highest-levelof courtesans, are taken from the cobble pathwaysof the Yoshiwara entertainment district of Edo(present-day Tokyo) in the 18th and 19th centuries
and reimagined to grace the feet of current society’s
most fashion-forward celebrities like Daphne
Guinness and Lady Gaga.

generation ... I believe artists can bringabout a revolution in traditional Japaneseculture through creative expressions
if we embrace our current time while
encompassing the context and flow ofpast, present, and future.

– N O R I TA K A TAT E H A N A

In Hairpin Series, the distinctively-shaped hairpins
used in the coiffures of the most celebrated
beauties of the period are recreated as monumental
3-dimensional lacquer forms that magnify theultimate status and elegance. And in Void Sculpture
Series, exquisite sword blades by a 15th generation
metalsmith are adapted from the samurai's poeticallyviolent potential to create sculptural works of themost captivating refinement and craftsmanship.
The success of Tatehana's work comes throughrecognition of these long-held symbols thatepitomize celebration and craftsmanship, and theirmasterful refashioning for contemporary tastes.

FA L L 2 0 1 93

PR E S E N T I NG S P ON S ORS
Arlene Schnitzer & Jordan Schnitzer

A DDI T I ONA L S U PP ORT P ROV I DE D BY
Regional Arts & Culture Council; the Japan Foundation, Los Angeles; and Yamato Transport U.S.A., Inc.

Co-curated by the Garden's Curator of Art, Laura J. Mueller, PhD, and Christina Cacouris,a journalist and curator based in New York, this exhibition showcases Tatehana's sculpturaland two-dimensional works, reimagining the timeless appeal of celebrated symbols forcontemporary audiences.

Akihito Nakanishi
Arlene Schnitzer Curator of Culture, Art, and Education
anakanishi@japanesegarden.org

Photos: Jonathan Ley

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