Fukase, Masahisa (1934 - 2012 )
Masahisa Fukase was born in 1934 on the northern island of Hokkaido, where his family operated a photographic portrait studio. In 1956, he graduated from Nihon University with a degree in photography. He subsequently worked for an advertising agency before turning to freelance work in 1968. In 1974, he participated in the New Japanese Photography exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art, New York. His first book, Yugi - Homo Ludence (1971), was centered on his wife Yoko. Following their divorce in 1976, Fukase returned to Hokkaido, where he began a series on ravens, which was eventually turned into his acclaimed book Karasu - Ravens (in English, The Solitude of Ravens) (1991). The ominously dark photographs reflected his increasingly depressed state of mind. In 1977, he received the Ina Nobuo Award.
Contemporary Japanese and East Asian Art
Ronin Gallery’s Contemporary art collection challenges the boundaries of tradition and innovation through the work of Japan's greatest contemporary artists and tomorrow’s most promising talents. Featured in museum exhibitions worldwide, contemporary Japanese and East Asian artists are pushing limits and exploring fresh techniques across mediums and styles. For many of the contemporary artists in this collection, inspiration sparks from an interweaving of old with new. Many combine traditional themes, tools, or materials with technology, contemporary themes, or innovative techniques. This hybrid expression is distinctly contemporary and unremittingly vital. From the Pop art legacy of the Shinohara’s to the foremost master of Japanese tattooing, Horiyoshi III, this collection of contemporary Japanese and East Asian art spans a wide range of media, including woodblock prints, screen prints, photography, etchings, paintings, sculpture, calligraphy, ceramics, and mixed media artworks.
