Tsugio Hattori merges cultural roots with his personal aesthetic in his radiant abstract
canvases, described by critics as "always commanding a coherent whole ... evoking worlds of
experience, sensuality and spiritualism."
Born in Japan, Hattori studied mechanical engineering and technical illustration, as
well as design and fine arts. He emigrated to the United States in 1981, disenchanted with the
hierarchical nature of the Japanese art scene which seemed to him to discourage individual
development. However, in leaving he regained a sense of his cultural identity, intensified by
nostalgia for traditions, which has influenced his work ever since.
The artist paints intuitively, an approach similar to Abstract Expressionism, yet
referenced as well in ancient Zen ink paintings. Blocks of deep yet subdued contrasting colors
and veiled designs, often appearing to represent the sun and the moon, float on the surface of
his paintings. Working with dry pigments, as well as with smooth and rough brush strokes,
Hattori obtains depth and complexity in his canvases, creating a compositional expansiveness
reminiscent of traditional Japanese landscape painting and woodblock prints. However, his
abstract forms suggest even more infinite spaces where past and present merge in a meditative
sensibility.
Hattori's work is included in prominent private and corporate collections both in the
U.S. and internationally.
BIRTHPLACE: Japan
EDUCATION: Shinjuku Art School, Japan
The Form Art Institute, Japan
Musashino Art University, Japan
Art Students League, NY
EXHIBITIONS: Kagoshima Art Exhibition, Kagoshima
Atlantic Gallery Inaugural, New York, NY
Il Mercante Galeria, Milan, Italy
Reece Galleries, New York, NY
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