Yoshitomo NARA

b. 1986 Japan

Nara was born in Hirosaki, a village located in the northern prefecture of Aomori, Japan. After obtaining a Masters in Fine Arts from Aichi Prefectural University of Fine Arts and Music in Nagoya, Japan in 1987, Nara moved to Germany to study at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf, from which he graduated in 1993.

Until 2000, Nara continued to live and work in Germany before returning to Japan, and is currently based out of Tokyo. Nara’s artwork primarily features depictions of children with oversized heads, in a style directly influenced by children’s book illustrations. His children are often sullen and angry, imbued with the angst and rebellion of Nara’s Punk rock influence. Nara’s work spans a diverse range of media, from postcards to canvas paintings to three-dimensional sculptural works, and has acquired a cult-like following as varied as his methods.

Nara was born in Hirosaki, a village located in the northern prefecture of Aomori, Japan. After obtaining a Masters in Fine Arts from Aichi Prefectural University of Fine Arts and Music in Nagoya, Japan in 1987, Nara moved to Germany to study at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf, from which he graduated in 1993.

Until 2000, Nara continued to live and work in Germany before returning to Japan, and is currently based out of Tokyo. Nara’s artwork primarily features depictions of children with oversized heads, in a style directly influenced by children’s book illustrations. His children are often sullen and angry, imbued with the angst and rebellion of Nara’s Punk rock influence. Nara’s work spans a diverse range of media, from postcards to canvas paintings to three-dimensional sculptural works, and has acquired a cult-like following as varied as his methods.

Selected Public Collections:

Museum of Modern Art, New York, USA
The British Museum, London, England
Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo, Japan
The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, USA
Neues Museum, Nuremberg, Germany
Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, USA
Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea
The National Museum of Art, Osaka, Japan
Centro de Arte Contemporaneo de Malaga, Malaga, Spain

Selected Solo Exhibitions:

“Wonder Room” Space to Space, Nagoya, Japan, 1984
“Harmlos” Kinderspielhaus, Dusseldorf, Germany, 1991
“Pacific Babies” Blum & Poe, Santa Monica, California, USA, 1995
“No, They Didn’t” Tomio Koyama Gallery, Tokyo, Japan, 1999
“Walk On” the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, USA，2000
“Who Snatched the Babies?” CNEAI, Chatou, France, 2002
“From the Depth of My Drawer” Toured in Japan and Korea, 2004-2005
“Yoshitomo Nara: Nobody’s Fool” Asia Society Museum, New York, 2010

2019

Yoshitomo Nara, Château La Coste, Le Puy-Sainte-Réparade, France.
En/trance: Yoshitomo Nara, Japan Society, New York.

2018

Yoshitomo Nara, N’s Yard, Nasushiobara City, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan.
Yoshitomo Nara: Puppy Love, Asian Art Museum, San Francisco.
Yoshitomo Nara: all things must pass, but nothing is lost/precious days around me, sometimes farther along, sometimes under my feet, New York.
Yoshitomo Nara: Drawings 1988–2018, Last 30 Years, Kaikai Kiki Gallery, Tokyo.
Yoshitomo Nara: Sixteen springs and sixteen summers gone—Take your time, it won’t be long now, Taka Ishii Gallery Photography / Film, Tokyo.
Yoshitomo Nara: Ceramic Works and…, Hong Kong. (Catalogue)
Yoshitomo Nara: Drawings: 1988–2018, Last 30 Years, Kaikai Kiki Gallery, Tokyo.

2017

Yoshitomo Nara: Will the Circle Be Unbroken, Daikanyama Hillside Plaza, Tokyo. (Catalogue)
Yoshitomo Nara: For Better or Worse: Works 1987–2017, Toyota Municipal Museum of Art, Aichi. (Catalogue)
Yoshitomo Nara: Thinker, 510 West 25th Street, New York. (Catalogue)

2016

Yoshitomo Nara: New Works, Stephen Friedman Gallery, London. (Catalogue)

2015

Yoshitomo Nara: Shallow Puddles, Blum & Poe, Tokyo. (Catalogue)
Yoshitomo Nara, Johnen Galerie, Berlin.
Yoshitomo Nara: “stars”, Hong Kong. (Catalogue)
Life is Only One: Yoshitomo Nara, Asia Society, Hong Kong.

2014

Yoshitomo Nara: Greetings from a Place in My Heart, Dairy Art Centre, London.
Yoshitomo Nara, Blum & Poe, Los Angeles. (Catalogue)

2013

Yoshitomo Nara, 534 West 25th Street, New York. (Catalogue)

2012

Yoshitomo Nara: The Little Little House in The Blue Woods, Towada Art Center, Aomori.
Yoshitomo Nara: a bit like you and me…, Yokohama Museum of Art, Kanagawa. Traveled to: Aomori Museum of Art.; Contemporary Art Museum, Kumamoto. (Catalogue)

2011

Print Works, Roppongi Hills A/D Gallery, Tokyo, Japan

2010

ceramic works, Tomio Koyama Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
Yoshitomo Nara: Nobody’s Fool, Asia Society Museum, New York, NY
New Editions, Pace Prints, New York, NY

2009

Marianne Boesky Gallery, New York, NY
The Crated Rooms in Iceland – Yoshitomo Nara + YNG, Reykjavik Art Museum, Reykjavik, Iceland

Yoshitomo NARA

<div class="article-cv"> <div class="row"> <div class="col-md-12">2019<ul class="article-cv-item"><li>Yoshitomo Nara, Château La Coste, Le Puy-Sainte-Réparade, France.</li><li>En/trance: Yoshitomo Nara, Japan Society, New York.</li></ul>2018<ul class="article-cv-item"><li>Yoshitomo Nara, N’s Yard, Nasushiobara City, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan.</li><li>Yoshitomo Nara: Puppy Love, Asian Art Museum, San Francisco.</li><li>Yoshitomo Nara: all things must pass, but nothing is lost/precious days around me, sometimes farther along, sometimes under my feet, New York.</li><li>Yoshitomo Nara: Drawings 1988–2018, Last 30 Years, Kaikai Kiki Gallery, Tokyo.</li><li>Yoshitomo Nara: Sixteen springs and sixteen summers gone—Take your time, it won’t be long now, Taka Ishii Gallery Photography / Film, Tokyo.</li><li>Yoshitomo Nara: Ceramic Works and…, Hong Kong. (Catalogue)</li><li>Yoshitomo Nara: Drawings: 1988–2018, Last 30 Years, Kaikai Kiki Gallery, Tokyo.</li></ul>2017<ul class="article-cv-item"><li>Yoshitomo Nara: Will the Circle Be Unbroken, Daikanyama Hillside Plaza, Tokyo. (Catalogue)</li><li>Yoshitomo Nara: For Better or Worse: Works 1987–2017, Toyota Municipal Museum of Art, Aichi. (Catalogue)</li><li>Yoshitomo Nara: Thinker, 510 West 25th Street, New York. (Catalogue)</li></ul>2016<ul class="article-cv-item"><li>Yoshitomo Nara: New Works, Stephen Friedman Gallery, London. (Catalogue) <br></li></ul>2015<ul class="article-cv-item"><li>Yoshitomo Nara: Shallow Puddles, Blum & Poe, Tokyo. (Catalogue)</li><li>Yoshitomo Nara, Johnen Galerie, Berlin.</li><li>Yoshitomo Nara: “stars”, Hong Kong. (Catalogue)</li><li>Life is Only One: Yoshitomo Nara, Asia Society, Hong Kong.</li></ul>2014<ul class="article-cv-item"><li>Yoshitomo Nara: Greetings from a Place in My Heart, Dairy Art Centre, London.</li><li>Yoshitomo Nara, Blum & Poe, Los Angeles. (Catalogue)</li></ul>2013<ul class="article-cv-item"><li>Yoshitomo Nara, 534 West 25th Street, New York. (Catalogue) <br></li></ul>2012<ul class="article-cv-item"><li>Yoshitomo Nara: The Little Little House in The Blue Woods, Towada Art Center, Aomori.</li><li>Yoshitomo Nara: a bit like you and me…, Yokohama Museum of Art, Kanagawa. Traveled to: Aomori Museum of Art.; Contemporary Art Museum, Kumamoto. (Catalogue)</li></ul>2011<ul class="article-cv-item"><li>Print Works, Roppongi Hills A/D Gallery, Tokyo, Japan <br></li></ul>2010<ul class="article-cv-item"><li>ceramic works, Tomio Koyama Gallery, Tokyo, Japan</li><li>Yoshitomo Nara: Nobody’s Fool, Asia Society Museum, New York, NY</li><li>New Editions, Pace Prints, New York, NY</li></ul>2009<ul class="article-cv-item"><li>Marianne Boesky Gallery, New York, NY</li><li>The Crated Rooms in Iceland – Yoshitomo Nara + YNG, Reykjavik Art Museum, Reykjavik, Iceland</li></ul><ul class="article-cv-item"> </ul> <ul class="article-cv-item"> </ul> </div>