Genpei Akasegawa

Rigorously researched, this retrospective celebrating the late artist Genpei Akasegawa offers an unexpected breadth of material beyond his renowned works. A leading artist of the Japanese postwar avant-garde, Akasegawa was a founding member of both the Neo-Dadaism Organizers collective (in 1960) and the Fluxus-informed group Hi-Red Center (in 1963). His more than fifty-year career pursued a diverse array of artistic languages beyond the 1960s experimentation that brought him early success. As documented in the show, this includes his political cartoons in publications such as Sakura gaho (from 1970 to ’71), for which he gained a cultlike following, as well as his photographic works that explore the psychogeography of cities through focus on architecturally redundant structures. Additionally, the exhibition brings to light his designs for experimental theatre and dance (including his collaboration with butoh choreographer Tatsumi Hijikata among others) and his lifelong engagement with graphic design as a blurred zone between artistic practice and commerce.

Importantly, the show also chronicles Akasegawa’s development as a writer—an activity that earned him considerable mainstream success and several prestigious awards. This is perhaps where the exhibition excels. As the art audience learns of his activities as a cartoonist and a writer hitherto unknown to them, fans of his literary works discover his artworks that are lesser known among the general public. With this, the show achieves surprisingly popular appeal without compromising its art-historical integrity or the complexity of Akasegawa’s practice.