Celebrating Asian Art

Yufu Shohaku

April 29–May 31
Opening reception, Friday, April 29, 5-9pm
TAI Modern is proud to present Japanese bamboo artist Yufu Shohaku’s first solo exhibition outside of Japan. This exhibition was initially shown in New York, and has recently travelled to Santa Fe, giving New Mexico art fans the opportunity to view these powerful baskets and sculptures in person.

Yufu Shohaku (born 1941) is not only a master bamboo artist, but also a cultured man with a meticulous mind, a leader in his community, a certified master flower arranger, and head of a local Shigin (chanted poetry) group. He is known for his robust and energetic rough-plaited baskets. Though Yufu’s works have sculptural presence, his belief is that beauty and functionality are at the core of his art. After completing a basket, he arranges flowers in it to determine whether he was successful in its execution. “When I make flower baskets, I always consider the size and balance of the baskets, as well as the type of flowers to be arranged in them,” Yufu explains. “For me, baskets and flowers are inseparable, and I get my inspiration from natural forms such as the earth and cliffs. I try to give my works an organic look, as if they are a part of nature.”

Yufu Shohaku, Meoto Iwa (The Wedded Rocks), 2020, madake bamboo, rattan, branches, shuro rope, 24 x 61 x 59 in.

The centerpiece of the exhibition is the magnificent and unusual Meoto Iwa (The Wedded Rocks). Yufu recreates in bamboo these sacred rocks, tied together with a rope, representing the union between Izanagi and Izanami, the two central deities in Japan’s creation myth. The artist spent much of 2020 working on this sculptural homage to connection and new beginnings.

Oki Toshie

June 24-July 23, 2022
Born in Gunma in 1976, Okie Toshie studied under Iizuka Shokansai. Since she began exhibiting her works in 2002, she has maintained an active schedule of shows, won several important awards, and has had her work enter several museums, including the Portland Arts Museum in Portland, Oregon. Most recently, some of her creations were included in Masterpieces of Bamboo Art: Katsushiro Soho and Fujinuma Noboru at the Tochigi Prefectural Museum of Fine Arts in Utsunomiya in 2020.

Commenting on her work, Okie remarked, "It is a joy for me to create my artwork. At the same time, it is painful. Every time I push my creative boundaries, I hit walls of resistance. This makes me realize how incompetent I am and how much there is still to learn. On top of that, it shows a part of me that I want to hide. This process is, however, a necessary part of my life just as eating and sleeping are. I chose to work in the Traditional Craft Organization which has many rules and regulations that limit working in more sculptural forms. Despite this, I am very comfortable working within this restrained freedom to express myself."

Honma Hideaki

July 29-August 27, 2022
Born in 1959 in Hatano-cho, Sado-gun, Niigata prefecture, Honma Hideaki is the adoptive son of the bamboo artist Honma Kazuaki. Hideaki draws inspiration for his creations from nature on Sado Island, where he lives, and uses men’yadake, a local variety of bamboo that is soft and flexible. In addition to practicing karate and tea ceremony, the artist balances his devotion to his family with a commitment to community, spending much of his time as an advocate of local culture.

This summer Honma Hideaki returns to TAI Modern, where he has exhibited several times in the past. Recently he has re-dedicated himself to developing his distinctive style, separate from his well-known father.