Year: 1969-1970
Medium: acrylic on cotton mounted on wooden panel
Dimensions: 20.2 x 30.5 cm (8 x 12 in.)
Acquired from NEW AUCTION, 2023
Motonaga’s typical vivid and generous colors and shapes are spread across this small painting. The simple title suggests a landscape with clouds floating at sunrise or sunset. In the mid-1950s when Motonaga was discovered by Jiro Yoshihara and joined the Gutai Art Association, his works often featured humorous shapes inspired by mountain ranges and streetscapes. However, from 1957 to the 1960s, when Motonaga’s name became widely known internationally, his works with “flowing” paints were highly abstract as seen in the comparison with Art informel. During his stay in New York from 1966, Motonaga adopted the expression of using coloring in acrylic paint and airbrush techniques to create luminous gradation. Since then, he returned to his earlier humorous shapes. This work was created after his return to Japan and right before he left the Gutai Art Association. The expression of color gradation from bright yellow to purple is a clear indication of his characteristic of colors after his time in New York. Like his works, Motonaga was known as a generous and optimistic person who referred to his works “Aho (idiot) School” and “Funny Art,” maintaining a sense of humor and friendliness throughout his career. He attempted to recreate Western abstract paintings which seemed to be inescapable from their complexity and lofty nature to something enjoyable. His approach could be considered the opposite of the fierceness of Shiraga and Murakami, who are also Gutai artists. The somehow pleasant shapes with light and easy coloring in this work indeed evoke the word “humorous,” a word that Motonaga committed in his art throughout his life.
