Masato Kobayashi “Artist and the Model”
I visited Masato Kobayashi’s first solo exhibition in three years, “Artist and the Model.” The venue is ShugoArts, a gallery in Roppongi.
I had just finished reading his recently published book “The Paints of This Planet,” so my interest in Masato Kobayashi was at its peak — I had been looking forward to this show very much.
Entering the gallery, the large-scale work “Model of this planet” greets you head-on.
It depicts a nude model lying on her stomach with a bullet fired into her back.
You cannot help but imagine the model, defenseless in the studio during the making of the piece.
Who fired the bullet into her back? Why did they pull the trigger?
As we picture that scenario, we start imagining the meaning of the work in front of us.
Numerous well-worn, paint-smeared cloths were placed around the piece.
The scattered cloths reminded me of used tissue paper…
Moving into the gallery’s back room, another major work, “Portrait of the artist,” stands with a towering presence.
As the title suggests, the figure holding a brush in his mouth must be Masato Kobayashi himself.
The slender build resembles Masato’s own, dominating the entire gallery space.
Masato Kobayashi refers to the world as “this planet.”
In the gallery space, works that sparkle like stars are shown in vivid, intense color.
The works pictured below are a series drawn with markers on well-worn paper.
As their motif, Masato Kobayashi replaces himself with a horse, drawn together with the model.
Small pencil drawings were also on view.
A set of three works — all sold on opening day.
You can see that he continues to work on his signature portrait series as well.
Opening Talk
At the opening talk session with guest Kazu Oshiro, we heard a fascinating conversation centered around “space and frame.”
Masato Kobayashi’s words — intuitive and charged with the primal energy that human beings carry inside — gave many hints and insights to an ordinary person like myself, bound as I am by preconceptions and rules.
I’d like to summarize what was discussed in the opening talk in another post soon.
What left a strong impression on me was Tomio Koyama of Tomio Koyama Gallery, on the same floor, walking back and forth again and again with a smile on his face to check on the opening.
Being able to encounter Masato Kobayashi’s raw, unfiltered talent made it a deeply satisfying day.
