This is the first posthumous retrospective exhibition of the works of a leading postwar Japanese painter, Nakanishi Natsuyuki (1935-2016).

Nakanishi’s creations transcend the existing frameworks of figurative and abstract art, reflecting his tireless search for answers to such questions as, “How does a painting come into being?” and “What position does painting truly occupy?”

This exhibit traces the more than a half-century of his creative journey, starting with his activities as a member of the avant-garde artistic collective Hi-Red Center, continuing to his collaborations with the butoh (Japanese avant-garde dance) performer Hijikata Tatsumi, and concluding with his return to painting in the latter half of the 1960s.

Also introduced in this exhibit is his sand work, Carborundum, White Morundum, first displayed in 1975 in the former Seibu Art Museum, and later reconstructed in the Sezon Museum of Art. This time it has been reconstructed again in accordance to Nakanishi’s instructions, breathing new life into his exploration of the relationship between artwork and the physical body.

Nakanishi described his paintings as “devices for gentle gazing and endless lingering.” As these words imply, it is our hope that you will find this an opportunity to quietly contemplate his works.