Hiroki Morinoue
Encyclopedia
Hiroki Morinoue is an American artist of Japanese descent who has helped to pioneer in the United States the fusion of western Impressionism
with modern Japanese design.
. Japanese workers were imported from Japan at the turn of the 20th century to Hawaii to work the plantations. Although the coffee plantations are gone, Holualoa remains a major producer and exporter of Kona coffee
from a cooperative of private growers. In addition, a large artist colony has taken hold in the town itself.
in Oakland, California, where he received his BFA
degree. Later, while in Japan
, Morinoue studied with a master sumi
e artist and a master of woodblock printing
. Morinoue still makes his home in Holoalua, on the Big Island of Hawaii
.
Hiroki Morinoue can be seen in several public and private collections in the USA (particularly in Hawaii) and Japan.
Impressionism
Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement that originated with a group of Paris-based artists whose independent exhibitions brought them to prominence during the 1870s and 1880s...
with modern Japanese design.
Early life
Morinoue was born in Kealakekua and raised near Holualoa, formerly a major coffee plantation town in the mountains above Kailua-Kona on the Big Island of HawaiiHawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
. Japanese workers were imported from Japan at the turn of the 20th century to Hawaii to work the plantations. Although the coffee plantations are gone, Holualoa remains a major producer and exporter of Kona coffee
Kona coffee
Kona coffee is the market name for coffee cultivated on the slopes of Hualalai and Mauna Loa in the North and South Kona Districts of the Big Island of Hawaii. It is one of the most expensive coffees in the world. Only coffee from the Kona Districts can be described as "Kona"...
from a cooperative of private growers. In addition, a large artist colony has taken hold in the town itself.
Education
Morinoue studied at the California College of Arts and CraftsCalifornia College of the Arts
California College of the Arts , founded in 1907, is known for its broad, interdisciplinary programs in art, design, architecture, and writing. It has two campuses, one in Oakland and one in San Francisco, California, USA...
in Oakland, California, where he received his BFA
Bachelor of Fine Arts
In the United States and Canada, the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, usually abbreviated BFA, is the standard undergraduate degree for students seeking a professional education in the visual or performing arts. In some countries such a degree is called a Bachelor of Creative Arts or BCA...
degree. Later, while in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Morinoue studied with a master sumi
Sumi
Sumi may refer to:* Sumi Jo, a South Korean lyric coloratura soprano* Sumi, of Miga, Quatchi, Sumi and Mukmuk, the mascots of the 2010 Winter Olympics and Paralympics* The Sumi Naga, one of the major Naga tribes in Nagaland, India...
e artist and a master of woodblock printing
Woodblock printing
Woodblock printing is a technique for printing text, images or patterns used widely throughout East Asia and originating in China in antiquity as a method of printing on textiles and later paper....
. Morinoue still makes his home in Holoalua, on the Big Island of Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
.
Works
It was Morinoue's seemingly abstract paintings of calm water on textured wood or woodblock prints that propelled him to prominence. The play of light on pebbles at the bottom of a creek or pond, bubbles, ripples, or the reflection on the surface of water are combined with a Japanese sense of balance and design in intense shades of aqua, black and blue creating art of refined, serene elegance. Subsequent works show a trend towards abstract art, experimentation in warmer palettes, rougher strokes, various subject matters and media such as ceramics and photography.Hiroki Morinoue can be seen in several public and private collections in the USA (particularly in Hawaii) and Japan.
Selected Collections
- The Hawaii State LibraryHawaii State LibraryThe Hawaii State Library is a historic building in the City & County of Honolulu that serves as the seat of the Hawaii State Public Library System, the only statewide library system and one of the largest in the United States. The Hawaii State Library building is located in downtown Honolulu...
- The Hawaii Convention CenterHawaii Convention CenterThe Hawai‘i Convention Center is a convention and exhibition center in Hawaii, located in Honolulu on the island of Oahu. The building cost $200 million and has of floor space. It was completed in 1997 and opened in 1998...
, Honolulu, HI - The Hawaii State Foundation on Culture and the ArtsHawaii State Foundation on Culture and the ArtsThe Hawaii State Foundation on Culture and the Arts was established by the Hawaii State Legislature in 1965 to “promote, perpetuate, preserve, and encourage culture and the arts, history and the humanities as central to the quality of life of the people of Hawaii”...
- Honolulu Council on Culture and the Arts, HI
- The Honolulu Academy of ArtsHonolulu Academy of ArtsThe Honolulu Academy of Arts is an art museum in Honolulu in the state of Hawaii. Since its founding in 1922 by Anna Rice Cooke and opening April 8, 1927, its collections have grown to over 40,000 works of art.-Description:...
, HI - The Contemporary Museum, HonoluluThe Contemporary Museum, HonoluluThe now defunct Contemporary Museum, Honolulu was the only museum in the state of Hawaii devoted exclusively to contemporary art. The Contemporary Museum had two venues: in residential Honolulu at the historic Spalding House, and downtown Honolulu at First Hawaiian Center.-Collection:Artists...
, HI - The Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts, San Francisco, CA
- The National Park Collection, MD
- Ueno no Mori Museum, Tokyo, Japan
- City of Fujisawa, KanagawaFujisawa, Kanagawais a city located in Kanagawa, Japan. As of 2010, the city had an estimated population of 407,731 and a population density of 5,870 people per km². The total area is 69.51 km²-Geography:...
, Japan - The Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art, Colorado
- Ross Art Collection, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
External links
- Commercial biography http://www.sharksink.com/pdf_bios/morinoue_hiroki.pdf
- Sharks Ink Publishinghttp://www.sharksink.com/artists.asp?artists=13
- Freed Gallery http://www.freedgallery.com/Morinoue/morinoue.html
- Artline http://www.artlineart.com/Morinoue_frames.html