Collectors Week
Hearing that “Collectors Week,” a collection exhibition by art collectors organized by The Artcomplex Center of Tokyo, was being held, I paid a visit.
The show displayed collections handled by three collectors (Makoto Sasa, Kiyoshi Koizumi, and Kazuhiko Seki) and the director of The Artcomplex Center of Tokyo (Yuzuru Shikida), ranging from deceased masters to up-and-coming young artists, with some works also offered for sale.
Mr. Kazuhiko Seki
I was fortunate enough to speak with the man himself, who happened to be at the gallery.
He collects pieces in which he senses some kind of glimmering spark, and so a wonderfully varied array of works was on display.
What’s more, every work on view was purchased when the artist was still young. He says he heads to galleries when an artist is just one to three years out of art school, or when they are holding their “first solo show.”
Moreover, since Mr. Seki was a company employee, his routine was basically to make his gallery rounds on weekends. He seems to be retired now, but he told me he regularly holds exhibitions like this one. He even mentioned that, once he reaches the limits of his age, he is considering donating the works to a museum or the like.
Each work was accompanied by a scrap of notebook paper bearing a brief comment, imbued with his personal feelings toward the piece.
There were also several works framed in acrylic boxes. When I asked, he had a clear reason: “I don’t want to hide the back of the canvas.” He said he wants to store the works in a state where all the information can be seen—the paint applied to the canvas, the signature and title written by the artist, and so on—”kept in a condition where you can view a wealth of information.” Since I hold the same view myself, it was an idea I could deeply relate to.
Summary
His approach—not aiming to sell, but creating a place where his own works can be seen by many viewers in the spotlight—is something I want to respect as a fellow collector.
He apparently owns about ten times as many works as are on display this time. Even though he bought them when the young artists were relatively inexpensive, the energy required to amass this many works surely marks him as quite the art lover.
Spending his time, paying for the venue, moving works in and out—there must be a great deal of hardship involved.
I found myself hoping that one day I, too, might stand in the same place…
