Acrylic on canvas mounted on FRP

54.6 x 54.6 x 9.5 cm. 21 1/2 x 21 1/2 x 3 3/4 in.

Signed in Japanese， titled in English， and dated on the reverse
LITERATURE
2011, Yoshitomo Nara: The Complete Works 1984 - 2010, Bijutsu Shuppan Sha, Tokyo, p.181

EXHIBITED
9 Jun - 21 Jul 2001, Clear for Landing, Galerie Michael Zink, Munich
14 Jul – 23 Sep 2012, Solo Exhibition NARA Yoshitomo: A Bit Like You and Me, Yokohama Museum of Art, Yokohama

PROVENANCE
Galerie Michael Zink, Munich
Previous Collection of Mr. Shun Kurokochi
5 Apr 2013, You are not Alone – Yoshitomo Nara Works from the Kurokochi Collection, Sotheby's Hong Kong Spring Auction, Lot 812
Important Private Collection, Asia

“Pop” refers to something fashionable, trendy, and sought after by young people, and pop culture is equivalent to mainstream culture. So what does “mainstream” mean? The answer changes with the times. Senior art consultant Joseph Chen once pointed out, “KAWS, now very trendy and considered to be very popular, has been creating art since the 1990s. At that time, he made graffiti on billboards and remodeled Disney cartoon characters, marking their original elements with his iconic ‘XX' as a way to present his own doubts and instigate humorous provocations. In fact, during its early years, this kind of street subculture attracted a group of young followers. As time passed, these young kids entered the market with substantial purchasing power, and therefore, the ‘subculture' became ‘mainstream culture'. ” The buyers, their voices, and their influence are the ones that actually determine what ‘mainstream' is. From this case, we can see how a taste changes and becomes redefined over time.
That said, this autumn auction is especially centered around the theme of “Pop Art” in attempt to present the tastes and unique aesthetics of the new generation as well as the breakthroughs made by various artists who express themselves using different media and abandon two dimensions in favor of three. The works of 13 artists, some of these including Yoshitomo Nara, Yayoi Kusama, Takeshi Murakami, Aya Takano, KAWS, Chen Fei and Chen Ke, are a phenomenal display of the main features of Pop Art: provocation, cuteness, rebellion, and freedom. This event therefore hopes to serve as a means of showing the genuine benefit of breaking away from the shackles of tradition and boldly embarking upon new and individual artistic paths.
My rebellion and monologue
Kai-Ten: a pinnacle of Yoshitomo Nara's artist career
In May 2018, on the opening day of Yoshitomo Nara's solo exhibition in Pace Gallery Hong Kong, the exhibition space was packed solid with people. Leng Lin, Pace Asia partner and president of Pace Hong Kong, said that near 20 works exhibited were sold out. The presence of Nara pushed the atmosphere of the opening to a climax. The focus of the audience's camera moved from the artworks to the artist, and some of them even tried to take a picture with him. The Nara heat has immediately taken over. At this moment, Nara seems more like a rock star than an artist. In the world of modern and contemporary art, there are only a handful of artists whose works exceed the limits of age and region and are known to every household, and Nara is the such a figure of the 21st century.
His reputation began with the solo exhibition,”I Don't Mind, If You Forget Me,” at the Yokohama Museum of Art in Japan in 2001, which was his first major exhibition at a public museum, upon his return to Japan after 12 years of studying in Germany. The exhibition then toured to the Ashiya City Museum of Art and History in Hyogo Prefecture, the Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art, the Asahikawa Museum of Art in Hokkaido, and at last to Yoshii Brick Brewhouse in his hometown, Aomori. After this large-scale exhibition, he was almost known to all in Japan. Mika Kuraya, curator of the National Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo, pointed out: “Resulting from this exhibition, Nara's reputation, fame and the number of followers have soared to a level beyond imagination. At this time, Nara has also gained popularity internationally, as an example of which, in 2000, he had a solo exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago. In the following year, he participated in the contemporary Japanese art exhibition, “Superflat,” curated by Takashi Murakami at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, which was widely recognized at home and abroad. The work, Kai-ten, completed in 2001 and offered this time, is a masterpiece from the period when his creation and reputation reached the peak.
The Breakthrough of Form, the Manifesto of Confessing.
As to the unexpected attention from the outside world, Nara once said that it felt like the sudden shift from an underground musician to a pop star, and was not easy to adapt to. However, it also made him aware of the social responsibility beyond artistic creation to carry, giving rise to the second crucial turning point of his art and the pursuit of a breakthrough. Since 2001, Nara started to expand his interest to the outside world, pay more attention to the society, surroundings, and life, and express his feelings and concerns through creation, rather than only drawing on his childhood memories and inner emotions. Regarding the form, he also tried to break away from the traditional composition of a square matrix. By affixing canvas piece by piece to the circular disc-shaped fiberglass base, he created a series of circular works, among which Kai-ten is a representative.
The disc-shaped composition, as Nara explained, is under the influence of the religious painting of the Kamakura period. For instance, either in the Japanese painting, Amida Coming Over the Mountain, or the Western medieval paintings, there is always a circle of light behind the Buddha, the saints, and angels. The “circle” bears the meaning of roundness and worldly-wise, signifying enlightenment. By adopting the form in his creation, Nara wished to break away from the inertia of traditional square composition and convey the essential values of life through his works, as a confession, a manifesto, a sign of enlightenment.
At the center of the disc-shaped canvas of Kai-ten, he depicted a girl driving an aircraft using flat painting technique, through concise contour and minimalist composition. The iconic features of the big face, slanting eyes, and curled mouth reveal her cynicism and defiant nature, presenting to the audience the spirit of “a thousand foes won't bend my will,” as well as an iron and fighting will. The hair flying backward and the leaning body indicate the flying speed. Although the wing and propeller of the aircraft are not depicted, the viewer sees nothing strange in the picture, proving the artist's mastering of styling and theme.
Beyond the Cute Appearance
The image of a girl driving an aircraft in high speed can be traced back to Nara's childhood. Back then, he was living in the countryside of Aomori. When the Second World War broke out in 1945, the military troops stationed there and the local agriculture output was mainly provided for military use. Though born in 1959 and never experienced war, Nara recalls his childhood memory of airplanes rumbling across the sky and people looking up with head high, which became his first impression of the plane. The child figure driving an aircraft appeared in his painting since the early 1990s, such as Untitled （1991）, Kai-ten （1994） and Kai-ten （2001）, showing the artist's favor for this theme and its particular significance.
The image of a pilot and a single aircraft in Kai-ten refers to the well-known “Kamikaze Special Attack Force,” a Japanese suicide squat against US military during the World War II. Following the spirit of traditional Bushido, the Kamikaze initiated suicide attacks against US naval vessels, surrounding the primary principle of “one person, one plane, and one bomb in exchange for one ship.” In the painting, the spirit of being duty-bound not to return and marching forward courageously has been magnified, which encourages the viewer to confront all challenges bravely. The work also relates to the psychological state of Nara at the time – he traveled across Europe and Asia to pursue the art dream and defend the values in which he believes. The work, resembling a mirror, profoundly reflects the artist's past, present, and future. When staring at this work, it seems to be cheering on us, bringing the viewers the courage to overcome difficulties and the confidence for future fights.
The Aesthetics of Blank-leaving
In the painting, Nara deliberately left a wide area of blank in the background. However, this is not a mere blank, but a well thought out. The yellow color is painted on top of the white, while the block-shaped canvas is collaged overlapping each other, presenting a consistent texture. The arrangement of pictorial elements draws the viewer's attention to the spatial pattern and highlights the rich texture of the pigments along with the portrayal of the protagonist. Between the void and the substance, the light and the heavy, appear the existence of the subject and the concise and serene aesthetics of the East. After the completion of the work, it was exhibited in the Galerie Michael Zink in Munich in 2001. Later in 2012, it was included in the “solo exhibition of of NARA Yoshitomo: A Bit Like You and Me, held by Yokohama Museum of Art” The work was firstly collected by the noted Japanese banker and collector, Kurokouchi, and then entered an important private collection in Asia. With a detailed and orderly collection record and significant representativeness, the work rarely offered at auction is a genuine treasure that can not be missed!

Price estimate:
HKD: 5,000,000 -8,000,000
USD: 636,900 - 1,019,100

Auction Result:
HKD : 5,900,000