On Kawara
Encyclopedia
is a Japan
ese conceptual art
ist living in New York City
since 1965. He has shown in many solo and group exhibitions, including the Venice Biennale
in 1976.
paintings" (the Today series), which consist entirely of the date on which the painting was executed in simple white lettering set against a solid background. The date is always documented in the language and grammatical conventions of the country in which the painting is executed. The paintings conform to one of eight standard sizes, ranging from 8x10 inches to 61x89 inches, all horizontal in orientation. The dates on the paintings are always centered on the canvas and painted white, whereas the background colors vary; the paintings from the early years tend to have bold colors, and the more recent ones tend to be darker in tone. For example, Kawara briefly used red for several months in 1967 and then returned to darker hues until 1977. Eschewing stencils in favor of hand-drawn characters, Kawara skillfully renders the script, initially an elongated version of Gill Sans
, later a quintessentially modernist Futura
. Each work is carefully executed by hand. Some days he makes more than one. If Kawara is unable to complete the painting on the day it was started he immediately destroys it. When a Date Painting is not exhibited, it is placed in a cardboard box custom-made for the painting, which is lined with a clipping from a local newspaper from the city in which the artist made the painting. Although the boxes are part of the work, they are rarely exhibited. Each year between 63 and 241 paintings are made.
Each Date Painting is registered in a journal and marked on a One Hundred Years Calendar. When Kawara finishes a painting, he applies a swatch of the paint mixture he used to a small rectangle that is then glued onto a chart in the journal. Under each colour is a number showing the painting's sequence in that year and a letter indicating its size. The journal therefore records the details of the painting’s size, color and newspaper headline, while the calendar uses colored dots to indicate the days in which a painting was made, and to record the number of days since the artist’s birth. Kawara has now created date paintings in more than 112 cities worldwide in a project that is planned to end only with his death.
has Kawara's life-dates as 26,697 (January 27, 2006) which, when calculated, place Kawara's birthdate at December 24, 1932. Other series of works include the I Went and I Met series of postcard
s sent to his friends detailing aspects of his life, and a series of telegrams sent to various people bearing the message "I AM STILL ALIVE". Between 1968 and 1979, On Kawara created his information series, I Got Up, in which he sent two picture postcards from his location on that morning. All of the cards list the artist's time of getting up, the date, the place of residence and the name and address of the receiver another series of postcards, I Got Up At, rubber-stamped with the time he got up that morning.
in New York. Visitors could hear One Million Years [Future] being read, while viewing One Million Years [Past] and a group of date paintings. The longest public reading from One Million Years took place at Documenta
11 in 2002, where male and female participants sat side-by-side in a glass enclosure taking turns reading dates for the duration of the 100-day exhibition, switching between [Past] and [Future]. In 2004, the project traveled to Trafalgar Square
in London for a continuous outdoor reading lasting 7 days and 7 nights. Since then, readings and recordings have taken place in cities around the world.
Kawara does not give interviews or comment about his work.
s 5 (1972), 7 (1982), and 11 (2002), in Kassel, and in the Tokyo Biennale (1970), the Kyoto Biennale (1976), and the Venice Biennale
(1976).
His work has been included in many conceptual art surveys from the seminal Information show at the Museum of Modern Art
, New York in 1970 to Reconsidering the Object of Art: 1965-1975 at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles
in 1995. Solo exhibitions of his work have included the Centre Pompidou, Paris in 1977; Continuity/Discontinuityat the Moderna Museet
, Stockholm in 1980; Museum Boymans-van Beuningen, Rotterdam in 1991; and the Dia Center for the Arts, New York in 1993.
On Kawara is represented by David Zwirner
, New York and Yvon Lambert Gallery
, Paris.
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...
ese conceptual art
Conceptual art
Conceptual art is art in which the concept or idea involved in the work take precedence over traditional aesthetic and material concerns. Many of the works, sometimes called installations, of the artist Sol LeWitt may be constructed by anyone simply by following a set of written instructions...
ist living in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
since 1965. He has shown in many solo and group exhibitions, including the Venice Biennale
Venice Biennale
The Venice Biennale is a major contemporary art exhibition that takes place once every two years in Venice, Italy. The Venice Film Festival is part of it. So too is the Venice Biennale of Architecture, which is held in even years...
in 1976.
Early life
After graduating from Kariya High School in 1951, Kawara moved to Tokyo. Kawara went to Mexico in 1959 and travelled through Europe, then settled in 1965 in New York City, where he has been an intermittent resident ever since.Today series
Since January 4, 1966 he has made a long series of "DateCalendar date
A date in a calendar is a reference to a particular day represented within a calendar system. The calendar date allows the specific day to be identified. The number of days between two dates may be calculated. For example, "24 " is ten days after "14 " in the Gregorian calendar. The date of a...
paintings" (the Today series), which consist entirely of the date on which the painting was executed in simple white lettering set against a solid background. The date is always documented in the language and grammatical conventions of the country in which the painting is executed. The paintings conform to one of eight standard sizes, ranging from 8x10 inches to 61x89 inches, all horizontal in orientation. The dates on the paintings are always centered on the canvas and painted white, whereas the background colors vary; the paintings from the early years tend to have bold colors, and the more recent ones tend to be darker in tone. For example, Kawara briefly used red for several months in 1967 and then returned to darker hues until 1977. Eschewing stencils in favor of hand-drawn characters, Kawara skillfully renders the script, initially an elongated version of Gill Sans
Gill Sans
Gill Sans is a sans-serif typeface designed by Eric Gill.The original design appeared in 1926 when Douglas Cleverdon opened a bookshop in his home town of Bristol, where Eric Gill painted the fascia over the window in sans-serif capitals that would later be known as Gill Sans...
, later a quintessentially modernist Futura
Futura
Futura may refer to:* Futura International Airways* Futura * Futura * Aprilia Futura, a motorcycle* Lincoln Futura, a Ford concept car* Futura a product of Hawkins Cookers Limited* Futura 2000, a graffiti artist...
. Each work is carefully executed by hand. Some days he makes more than one. If Kawara is unable to complete the painting on the day it was started he immediately destroys it. When a Date Painting is not exhibited, it is placed in a cardboard box custom-made for the painting, which is lined with a clipping from a local newspaper from the city in which the artist made the painting. Although the boxes are part of the work, they are rarely exhibited. Each year between 63 and 241 paintings are made.
Each Date Painting is registered in a journal and marked on a One Hundred Years Calendar. When Kawara finishes a painting, he applies a swatch of the paint mixture he used to a small rectangle that is then glued onto a chart in the journal. Under each colour is a number showing the painting's sequence in that year and a letter indicating its size. The journal therefore records the details of the painting’s size, color and newspaper headline, while the calendar uses colored dots to indicate the days in which a painting was made, and to record the number of days since the artist’s birth. Kawara has now created date paintings in more than 112 cities worldwide in a project that is planned to end only with his death.
Title and postcards
Much like the Today series, Kawara uses the number of days followed by the date the work was executed as his life-dates. So the piece entitled Title at the National Gallery of ArtNational Gallery of Art
The National Gallery of Art and its Sculpture Garden is a national art museum, located on the National Mall between 3rd and 9th Streets at Constitution Avenue NW, in Washington, DC...
has Kawara's life-dates as 26,697 (January 27, 2006) which, when calculated, place Kawara's birthdate at December 24, 1932. Other series of works include the I Went and I Met series of postcard
Postcard
A postcard or post card is a rectangular piece of thick paper or thin cardboard intended for writing and mailing without an envelope....
s sent to his friends detailing aspects of his life, and a series of telegrams sent to various people bearing the message "I AM STILL ALIVE". Between 1968 and 1979, On Kawara created his information series, I Got Up, in which he sent two picture postcards from his location on that morning. All of the cards list the artist's time of getting up, the date, the place of residence and the name and address of the receiver another series of postcards, I Got Up At, rubber-stamped with the time he got up that morning.
One Million Years
One Million Years is one of the artist’s best-known works about the passage and marking of time. The first audio presentation of the reading of One Million Years occurred in 1993 during Kawara’s yearlong solo exhibition “One Thousand Days One Million Years” at Dia Center for the ArtsDia Art Foundation
Dia Art Foundation is a non-profit organization that initiates, supports, presents, and preserves art projects. It was established in 1974 as the Lone Star Foundation by Philippa de Menil, the daughter of Houston arts patron Dominique de Menil and an heiress to the Schlumberger oil exploration...
in New York. Visitors could hear One Million Years [Future] being read, while viewing One Million Years [Past] and a group of date paintings. The longest public reading from One Million Years took place at Documenta
Documenta
documenta is an exhibition of modern and contemporary art which takes place every five years in Kassel, Germany. It was founded by artist, teacher and curator Arnold Bode in 1955 as part of the Bundesgartenschau which took place in Kassel at that time...
11 in 2002, where male and female participants sat side-by-side in a glass enclosure taking turns reading dates for the duration of the 100-day exhibition, switching between [Past] and [Future]. In 2004, the project traveled to Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square is a public space and tourist attraction in central London, England, United Kingdom. At its centre is Nelson's Column, which is guarded by four lion statues at its base. There are a number of statues and sculptures in the square, with one plinth displaying changing pieces of...
in London for a continuous outdoor reading lasting 7 days and 7 nights. Since then, readings and recordings have taken place in cities around the world.
Pure Consciousness
In Pure Consciousness, a traveling exhibition initiated in 1998, Kawara lent seven Date paintings (January 1 to January 7, 1997) to kindergartens and schools in Madagascar, Australia, Bhutan, Ivory Coast, Columbia, Turkey, Japan, Finland, Iceland, Israel, and the United States. At all schools they hang in classrooms, bearing dates that fall within the lifespans of the children.Kawara does not give interviews or comment about his work.
Exhibitions
Kawara's first exhibitions include the first Nippon Exhibition, at the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, in 1953, and at the Takemiya and Hibiya galleries the following year. His work was exhibited at New York's Dwan Gallery in 1967, and his one-person exhibition "One Million Years" was shown in Düsseldorf, Paris, and Milan in 1971. Kawara's work was included in DocumentaDocumenta
documenta is an exhibition of modern and contemporary art which takes place every five years in Kassel, Germany. It was founded by artist, teacher and curator Arnold Bode in 1955 as part of the Bundesgartenschau which took place in Kassel at that time...
s 5 (1972), 7 (1982), and 11 (2002), in Kassel, and in the Tokyo Biennale (1970), the Kyoto Biennale (1976), and the Venice Biennale
Venice Biennale
The Venice Biennale is a major contemporary art exhibition that takes place once every two years in Venice, Italy. The Venice Film Festival is part of it. So too is the Venice Biennale of Architecture, which is held in even years...
(1976).
His work has been included in many conceptual art surveys from the seminal Information show at the Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
, New York in 1970 to Reconsidering the Object of Art: 1965-1975 at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles
Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles
The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles is a contemporary art museum with three locations in greater Los Angeles, California. The main branch is located on Grand Avenue in Downtown Los Angeles, near Walt Disney Concert Hall...
in 1995. Solo exhibitions of his work have included the Centre Pompidou, Paris in 1977; Continuity/Discontinuityat the Moderna Museet
Moderna Museet
Moderna museet, the Museum of Modern Art, Stockholm, Sweden, is a state museum located on the island of Skeppsholmen in central Stockholm, that was first opened in 1958. Its first manager was Pontus Hultén...
, Stockholm in 1980; Museum Boymans-van Beuningen, Rotterdam in 1991; and the Dia Center for the Arts, New York in 1993.
On Kawara is represented by David Zwirner
David Zwirner
David Zwirner is a gallerist and art dealer and owner of the David Zwirner Gallery in New York City. In 2010 Zwirner was listed at number four in the ArtReview annual "Power 100" list.-Early Life:...
, New York and Yvon Lambert Gallery
Yvon Lambert Gallery
Yvon Lambert Gallery is a contemporary art gallery founded by Yvon Lambert in 1966. There are two locations; one in Paris and the second in New York City.-History:...
, Paris.
Artist Books
Kawara has created several artist's books:- One Million Years, 1999, Editions Micheline Szwajcer & Michèle Didier (2 Volumes)
- I MET, 2004, Editions Micheline Szwajcer & Michèle Didier (12 Volumes)
- I WENT, 2007, mfc-michèle didier (12 Volumes)
- I GOT UP, 2008, mfc-michèle didier (12 Volumes)
Influences on Contemporary Artists
- onKawaraUpdate (v2) (2007) by American art collective MTAAMTAAMTAA is a Brooklyn, New York-based conceptual and new media art duo composed of M.River and T.Whid . The two artists founded MTAA in 1996...
updates and automates (via software) the process-oriented nature of On Kawara's date paintings. - American artist Eric DoeringerEric DoeringerEric Doeringer is an artist currently living and working in Brooklyn, New York. He graduated from Brown University in 1996 with a B.A. and received an MFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston in 1999...
recreated On Kawara's I Got Up project and created a Today painting with his own birthday as part of his Bootleg series. - British artist David Michael Clarke reworked On Kawara's Today series as Today Marriages 1969 - 1999 (2001).
- In Return to Sender (2004) British artist Jonathan Monk co-opts On Kawara's I Got Up At (1968–1979).
- I am Still Alive is an installation piece after On Kawara by European artist Martin John Callanan.
- Start it is a license to practice On Kawara's individual moments by German artist Stefan Hager.
- 891 (2006) by Belgian artist Kurt Duyck is a Blog Art tribute to On Kawara's I Got Up At.
- On Kawara is not Dead (2006) by Belgian artist Danny DevosDanny DevosDanny Devos also known as DDV is a Belgian artist whose work involves body art and performance art and a fascination with true crime....
is a Blog Art tribute to On Kawara's I am Still Alive. - The Japanese artist Tatsuo Miyajima's use of numbers is a product of On Kawara's influence on him.
- In his multipart Rwanda Project, executed between 1994 and 2000 in response to the Rwandan genocideRwandan GenocideThe Rwandan Genocide was the 1994 mass murder of an estimated 800,000 people in the small East African nation of Rwanda. Over the course of approximately 100 days through mid-July, over 500,000 people were killed, according to a Human Rights Watch estimate...
, Chilean artist Alfredo Jaar sent Rwandan tourist postcards to his friends around the world, mailed from neighboring Uganda, bearing the names of people who he'd encountered while travelling in Rwanda, reversing the self-referential content of On Kawara's work 'I am Still Alive'; "Jyamiya Muhawenimawa is still alive!", "Caritas Namazuru is still alive!", "Canisius Nzayisenga is still alive!" etc. - Rakawa.net is a micro-bloggingMicro-bloggingMicroblogging is a broadcast medium in the form of blogging. A microblog differs from a traditional blog in that its content is typically smaller in both actual and aggregate file size...
web-site, which is devoted to honor On Kawara's work and simultaneously offers users to document and to inform about daily accomplishments, based on the question "What have you achieved today?" and optionally illustrated by a picture. - The On Kawara Code (2008) by the Canadian artist Timothy Comeau reproduces Kawara's date paintings and One Million Years books using web-programming.
- Between 2004 and 2007, Candida HöferCandida HöferCandida Höfer is a Cologne, Germany-based photographer and a former student of Bernd and Hilla Becher. Like other Becher students – Andreas Gursky, Thomas Ruff, Thomas Struth – Höfer's work is known for technical perfection and a strictly Conceptual approach...
realized the project On Kawara: Date Paintings (2009), which attempts to document Kawara’s oeuvre at the point where each work is hung in its respective collector’s home.
External links
- On Kawara - David Zwirner
- Press on the artist by year
- Exhibition "One Million Years" by On Kawara David Zwirner, New York, January 2009
- A piece on Kawara by Adrian Searle from the Guardian
- An essay by art critic Lynne Cooke on On Kawara
- Consciousness. Meditation. Watcher on the Hills. 20 November 2002 - 26 January 2003 exhibition at Ikon GalleryIkon GalleryThe Ikon Gallery is an English gallery of contemporary art, located in Brindleyplace, Birmingham. It is housed in the Grade II listed, neo-gothic former Oozells Street Board School, designed by John Henry Chamberlain in 1877. The gallery's current director is Jonathan Watkins.Ikon was set up to...
, BirminghamBirminghamBirmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, UK. - "On Kawara." Contemporary Artists, 5th ed. St. James Press, 2001.