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ARTIST STATEMENT




A brief history of my art


 I was born in countryside and used to play in nature, climbing

trees, hills, swimming in the river, and so on. When I was 22 years

old, I started painting by self-taught. I wanted to paint nature which

I had seen for long time.


 At first I used oil. But soon changed to watercolor because the

atmosphere of oil painting was very different from what I saw in

nature, feelings of transiency and infinity of the universe. After 23

years, when I was 45 years old, I began Sumie, black and white

painting using Japanese and Chinese traditional black ink on white

paper. Because watercolor was not enough for me to express what I

saw in nature.


 When I painted by watercolor, I tried to express the feeling of

transiency by layering thin colors. But about infinity feeling, I could

not catch it at that time. When I got to know the limits of watercolor

expression, I started Sumie. But it was very different from watercolor.

By trial and error, I found many unexpected things; nature became

just a symbol, using many wet-in-wet washes invited natural

phenomenon in painting, and the unpainted parts, like the mountain

covered with snow, cloud, and mist, showed me a great wisdom of

how to live. To express without painting implies for me to live

without ego, let it be, let it go. Then I found infinite silence and

stillness in the black painted background where all transient things

come from and go back to. I realized the relation between transiency

and infinity.


 Since then to connect these silence and stillness is my primary

thing to paint. Now I do not want to put myself into my painting

because I have known that I am not the man who paint a picture but

a witness to the manifesting art. I just want my painting to be a clear

mirror. As myself goes out from painting, so it reflects your being

clearly. Thank you.




Mountains. Place of silence.

            by Marina Medina, curator


 The encounter of the people with the mountains is an extraordinary

encounter because in many cultures and religions the belief has always

been that the gods live up there on their summits. Mountains are

therefore in close connection with religion and spirituality.


 According to Greek mythology, was believed that the god Zeus has

been born and raised on Mount Ida on the island of Crete. Later Zeus

chose Mount Olympus as the home of the Greek gods.


 In our culture, mountains play a crucial role in history because a

number of important events happened on the mountains as told in the

holy writings of the Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, and

Islam).


 God Yahweh met Moses several times on Mount Sinai. There Moses

received the ten commitment, which regulate the relationship between

God and humans as well as the inter human relationship. Noah's Ark

stranded on Mount Ararat after 40 days and 40 nights of deluge. From

there, a new chapter in the history of mankind begins. Christians

associate Mount Tabor with the place of theTransfiguration of the Lord.

Here Jesus appeared to his disciples in divine form. According to the

Koran, Mohammed received his revelation on Mount Hira.


 According to the tradition of Eastern religious belief, mountains are

also seen as the seat of gods or spirits, or even revered as sacred.

Mount Kailash is a sacred mountain for followers of Tibetan Buddhism,

Hinduism, Jainism and the Bon religion due to its distinctive

symmetrical shape resembling a crystal. Out of respect for its religious

significance, the Kailash remained therefore unclimbed. Every year,

the Kailash attracts thousands of pilgrims who, depending on their

faith, circulate it in one direction or the other.


 Fujisan, Japan's highest and most beautiful mountain, has always

been considered sacred in Shinto. On its feet and slopes thousands of

shrines have been built to worship different deities.


 No artist conveys the representation of mountains as place of

spirituality like Koichi Yamashita. His works radiate silence and

tranquillity and give the feeling of being connected to the universe.

Koichi Yamashita specializes in an ancient tradition of painting, which

is known in Japan as Sumi-e ("Sumi", means ink and "e" means picture,

painting). In Japan, ink painting is closely associated with Zen

Buddhism, where the essential is reduced to simplicity and plainness

and attention is paid to extreme perfection. Originally this painting

technique was used by Buddhist monks in China as well as in Japan,

later with the spread of Zen Buddhism in Japan it was intensively

adopted in different Zen schools. The reduction to the essential also

reflects the Japanese spirit in art.


 Mastering the art of Sumi-e requires an extraordinary sensitivity and

attentiveness because every stroke of the brush is irrevocable. In

every picture of the artist Koichi Yamashita the spiritual structure of

the mountain is noticeable, the character of his being appears and lets

the observer, completely in the sense of Zen Buddhism, feel one with

the universe.


 Koichi Yamashita is a great Sumi-e master who impressively depicts

the colossuses of nature as places of silence where the soul of

Zen-Buddhism can be recognized.


 May all visitors to this exhibition as well as the readers of this

catalogue feel the touch of the spirit of Zen-Buddhism and share it

with joy.


( This sentence is from the catalogue of the exhibition "Mountains.

Place of silence" at Lexus Forum Darmstadt in Germany 2019)




KOICHI YAMASHITA


1965

Born in Gumma Prefecture Japan.


1978

Read Colin Fletcher “The New Complete Waker” and yearned for wilderness.


1979

Read H.D.Thoreau “Walden-or Life in the Woods” and started solo trekking.


1984

Entered Shinshu University (department of science). Climbed Japan Alps.


1987

Started painting by self-taught.


1989

Graduated from Shinshu University (ecology major).


1990~2017

Selected contests (awards received).


1992

Started solo exhibitions.


1997

Started Zen practice.


1998

Traveled European countries and U.S. for four months to see historical

masterpieces in major museums.


1999

Visited major museums and galleries in Japan.


2010

Started Sumi-e (painting with black ink on paper).


2012

Selected for art book “Beautiful Japanese Landscapes by Watercolor”


2013~2017

Selected for art magazine.


2018

Solo exhibition in Frankfurt am Main, Germany.


2019

Solo exhibition in Darmstadt, Germany.

Solo exhibition at Northern Alp Museum, in Hokkaido Japan.

Lectured at the headquarters of Japanese Zen Buddhism Oubaku-shu school

about the common ground and meaning of science, art, and religion.


2022

Solo exhibition in Crestone, Colorado US.


2023

Solo exhibition in Pasadena, California US.

Solo exhibition in Crestone, Colorado US.


2024

Art Show in Crestone, Colorado US.

Art Show in Pasadena, California US.

Art Show in Hollywood, California US.

Art Show in Denver(two places), Colorado US.




Thank you for visiting.

My works are here;

www.koichiyamashita.com




















by farnorthernforest | 2012-04-01 04:00 | 自己紹介/ABOUT

制作や旅や登山についてなど。


by 山下康一