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2018 Art season
Bee Barn

F. Tanabe Chikuunsai IV

"Connexion / La source"

published at 12/02/2018

"For this installation, I used one of Nature’s own components, bamboo, which here expresses this connection between Nature, Humankind and History."

Connexion / la source, installation de Tanabe Chikuunsai IV à Chaumont-sur-Loire, 2018 - © Éric Sander
TANABE Chikuunsai IV carries on his shoulders the weight of a tradition nurtured in Osaka for centuries. Thanks to the techniques inherited from his ancestors and to his personal research, his monumental tiger bamboo installations, which completely take over their exhibition spaces, give visitors a genuine feel of the different characteristics of the plant. His sculptures present motifs inspired from nature while fiercely disapproving of the ever more industrialised environment in which humanity lives. At the same time, TANABE Chikuunsai IV’s woven bamboo sculptures represent connections between him and his family, him and the world – bringing to mind concepts ranging from the intimate to the universal.
Symbolising good omen, similar to the pine or the prune tree, bamboo is an incarnation of Japanese aesthetics. It stands tall and upright, its leaves producing a natural, soothing sound in the breeze. The artist only uses stalks of tiger bamboo (torachiku, torafudake) or black bamboo, which only grow in one place in Japan, where the soil endows them with these unique stripes.
 
“Chaumont-sur-Loire’s first fortress was built in the 10th century. My work was carried out in one of the buildings of Chaumont-sur-Loire’s “model farm”, construction of which began in 1903 and was completed ten years later.
Château de Chaumont-sur-Loire stands in generous natural surroundings, with the majestic River Loire flowing at its feet. When evening has fallen the stars sparkle down in the blackness of night. In the morning, you are awakened by the sound of birdsong and are instantly aware of the benevolence of the people around you.
The connection with nature in all its generosity is the source of Humankind’s existence on Earth, of the coexistence of Humankind and Nature.
For this installation, I used one of Nature’s own components, bamboo, which here expresses this connection between Nature, Humankind and History.
Feeling the might of the Royal River as it flows past the Château’s feet, I wanted to express the source of Humankind’s existence, its connection with Nature, by creating this work in a building steeped in History.”  TANABE Chikuunsai IV

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES

TANABE Chikuunsai IV
JAPAN
 

Tanabe Chikuunsai IV à Chaumont-sur-Loire, 2018 - © Minamoto Tadayuki

TANABE Chikuunsai IV comes from a very famous line of artists specialising in the art of bamboo.
He began to work this material while still a young boy, and when he joined the “sculpture” department of Tokyo University of Arts, his destiny to follow in his ancestors’ footsteps seemed all but mapped out before him. But he was not yet certain he wanted to spend the rest of his life working bamboo, and for several years pondered the purpose of his enrolment at the university, seeking out possibilities that would allow him to consider a different future, away from his family’s artistic tradition. He nevertheless ended up realising, after this time of doubting, that working bamboo was an integral part of his life.
In Oita, on the island of Kyushu – a major production hub for bamboo weaving, he learned different techniques from the ones he had been taught as a child. On his return, he began to work with his father and learned the techniques passed down by his ancestors, all the while continuing to hone his own techniques. TANABE bamboo art is characterised by a subtle combination of tradition and new techniques, created by each generation.
Takeo TANABE has exhibited his work in several countries abroad since 1999. In 2006, he received the artist name of Shôchiku TANABE (Shôchiku meaning “little bamboo”) and, recently, the artist name of TANABE Chikuunsai IV, following on from his father.
Chikuunsai IV’s grandfather, Chikuunsai II, had specialised in weaving light openwork, fashioned from extremely fine bamboo stalks. His father, Chikuunsai III, meanwhile, had developed a technique where bamboo talks could be used to create abstract forms of complex, parallel and non-woven architecture.
Chikuunsai IV has managed to tap into this rich range of techniques and styles in his training repertoire to develop his own style as the fourth generation of his lineage.

AWARDS

2016
Japan Crafts Association Encouragement Prize
 
2015
Takashimaya Art Prize
Winner, 44th Exhibition of Japanese Art Crafts, Kinki District, Japan
 
2010
The Bavarian State Prize
 
2007
COTSEN Bamboo Prize
 
2004
Association Award, Sakai Art Exhibition
Kasaku Award, Zen Kansai Art Exhibition Sponsor by Osaka Municipal Museum of Art
First Prize, Osaka Craft Exhibition Kasaku Award
 
2002
Yumiuri Television Award, All Kansai Art Exhibition
 
2001
Sakai Mayor Award, Sakai Art Exhibition
 
2000
Oita Governor Award, Bamboo Craft Exhibition
Labour Ministry Award, All Japan Technical Exhibition

PUBLIC COLLECTIONS

Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, USA
Asociación Peruano Japonesa, Lima, Peru
Imperial Household Agency, Japan
Long Beach Museum of Art, USA
Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minneapolis, USA
Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens, Miami, USA
Musée Guimet, Paris, France
Museo Nacional de Arte, La Paz, Bolivia
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, USA
Museum of Fine Arts, Gifu, Japan
Philadelphia Museum of Art, USA
Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, USA
The British Museum, London, United Kingdom
The Ruth and Sherman Lee Institute for Japanese Art, USA
Victoria and Albert Museum, London, United Kingdom
Complete Biography

SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2017
Tokyo Takashimaya Art Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
Osaka Takashimaya Art Gallery, Osaka, Japan
Pierre Marie Giraud Gallery, Brussels, Belgium
 
2016
Carte blanche à Shouchiku Tanabe, Musée national des arts asiatiques – Guimet, Paris, France
 
2015
Mingei Japanese Arts, Paris, France
Beyond Connection, La Celle-Saint-Cloud, France
 
2014
Zen, Pierre Marie Giraud, Brussels, Belgium
 
2013
Masaki Museum, Osaka, Japan
 
2012
Ymaguchike Museum, Osaka, Japan
 
2011
Osaka Takashimaya Art Gallery, Osaka, Japan
Nagoya Takashimaya Art Gallery, Nagoya, Japan
 
2010
Tokyo Takashimaya Art Gallery X, Tokyo, Japan
 
2008
Osaka Takashimaya Art Gallery, Osaka, Japan
 
2007
Art Interactive, Tokyo, Japan
 
2006
Grand Hotel Villa Castagnola, Lugano, Switzerland
 
2005
Wacol Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
 
2003
Wacol Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
 
2002
Cortlan Jessup Gallery, New York, USA

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2017
Face the Material, Nihonbashi Takashimaya and Osaka Takashimaya, Japan
Bamboo – Fiber built Japan, Japan House, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Japanese Bamboo Art: The Abbey Collection, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA
Adrian Sassoon, Masterpiece London, The Royal Hospital Chelsea, London, United Kingdom
 
2016
Adrian Sassoon, Pavilion of Art & Design London, London, United Kingdom
Adrian Sassoon, Masterpiece London, The Royal Hospital Chelsea, London, United Kingdom
Craft Arts: Innovation of “Tradition and Avant-Garde” and the Present Day, The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, Japan
63rd Japan Traditional Crafts Exhibition, Tokyo, Japan
 
2015
Adrian Sassoon, Pavilion of Art & Design London, London, United Kingdom
Adrian Sassoon, Masterpiece London, The Royal Hospital Chelsea, London, United Kingdom
44th Exhibition of Japanese Art Crafts, Kinki District, Japan
Modern Twist: Contemporary Japanese Bamboo Art, The Ruth Funk Centre for Textile Arts, Florida, USA
Bamboo and Lacquer, Takashimaya Art Gallery, Osaka and Tokyo, Japan
 
2014
Beauty of Kogei: Art Crafts in Japan, Japan Creative Centre Embassy of Japan, Singapore
Enku Exhibition, The Museum of Fine Arts, Gifu, Japan
Makie - The Beauty of Gold Japanese Lacquer, Bahrain National Museum, Manama, Bahrain
ZEN Bamboo and Lacquer: Takashi Wakamiya and Shouchiku Tanabe, TAI Modern Gallery, Santa Fe, USA
 
2013
Contemporary Kogei Styles in Japan, Morikami Museum, Delray Beach, USA
Japanese Bamboo Masters, Mingei Japanese Arts Gallery, Paris, France
Pierre Marie Giraud, Design Miami/Basel, Basel, Switzerland
Bamboo and Lacquer, Takashimaya Art Gallery, Osaka and Tokyo, Japan
 
2012
Permanent Beauty in Japanese Arts, Mingei Japanese Arts Gallery, Paris, France
Pierre Marie Giraud, Design Miami, Miami Beach, USA
Japanese Bamboo Masters, Mingei Japanese Arts Gallery, Paris, France
 
2010
Japanese Bamboo: Tracing the Legend of Beppu Craftsmanship, Thailand Creative and Design Centre, Bangkok, Thailand
 
2008
The Chikuunsai Family: Four Generation of Bamboo Art, TAI Modern Gallery, Santa Fe, USA
New Bamboo: Contemporary Masters, Japan Society, New York, USA
 
2007
Celebration of the Next Generation Exhibit, Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, San Francisco, USA
East Weaves West: Basketry from Japan and Britain, Collins Gallery, Glasgow, United Kingdom
 
2006
The Quiet Beauty of Japanese Bamboo Art, Faulconer Gallery, Grinnell, USA
Golden Week on Japanese Art, Seattle Museum, Seattle, USA
The Tanabe Family: Four Generations of Bamboo Artists, Lee Institute for Japanese Art, USA
Beyond Basketry: Japanese Bamboo Art, Boston Museum, Boston, USA
 
2004
San Francisco International Art Exposition, San Francisco, USA
Palm Beach Classic, West Palm Beach, USA
Japanese Bamboo Exhibition, Murakami Museum, Florida, USA
Two Person Exhibition, Seiundo Gallery, Zurich, Switzerland
Bridge Exhibition Japan – Korea, Sakai City Gallery, Osaka, Japan
SOFA NY, New York, USA
SOFA Chicago, Chicago, USA
 
2003
Bridge Exhibition, St James Theatre, New Zealand
Spoerri Exhibition, Volkerkunde Museum University of Zurich, Switzerland
Japan – Holland Cultural Exhibition, Laikus National Museum, The Netherlands
 
2002
Y-G Arts Exhibition, Irohani Gallery, Japan
Bridge Exhibition, Florence Lynch Gallery, New York, USA
Bamboo Works Exhibition, Osaka Modern Art Centre, Osaka, Japan
 
2001
Philadelphia Craft Show, Philadelphia, USA
Osaka Craft Exhibition, Osaka harbor ATC Gallery, Osaka, Japan
 
2000
Chikuunsai Four Generation Exhibition, Cortland Jessup Gallery, Boston, USA
 
1999
All Kansai Art Exhibition, Osaka City Museum, Osaka, Japan
View on the map
Connexion / la source, installation de Tanabe Chikuunsai IV à Chaumont-sur-Loire, 2018 - © Éric Sander
Connexion / la source, installation de Tanabe Chikuunsai IV à Chaumont-sur-Loire, 2018 - © Éric Sander
Connexion / la source, installation de Tanabe Chikuunsai IV à Chaumont-sur-Loire, 2018 - © Éric Sander
Connexion / la source, installation de Tanabe Chikuunsai IV à Chaumont-sur-Loire, 2018 - © Éric Sander
Connexion / la source, installation de Tanabe Chikuunsai IV à Chaumont-sur-Loire, 2018 - © Éric Sander
Connexion / la source, installation de Tanabe Chikuunsai IV à Chaumont-sur-Loire, 2018 - © Éric Sander
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