exhibition in futur
Between Abstract Art and Tradition
April 17 to May 30, 2026
Two leading Japanese artists, a painter and a sculptor, will be featured in the gallery from April 17 to May 30 in an exhibition that explores the subtle connections between abstract art and tradition.
RIKIZO
RIKIZO, who at a young age left a stifling Japan to arrive in Europe, in Paris, where he discovered an unexpected artistic vibrancy, quickly made a name for himself. His minimalist style, his complex geometric forms, despite their apparent simplicity, and a palette notable for its sumptuous blacks and reds, have indeed propelled him to the ranks of the greats.
Abstract in the Western sense of the word, his works nonetheless demonstrate a beautiful fidelity to his origins. And Lawrence RH Smith, Curator Emeritus of Japanese Antiquities at the British Museum in London, connects the broad bands that occupy the canvas with "the strokes of ideograms, often changing direction abruptly, as is frequently the case in the kaisho style."
RIKIZO, after much reflection, realized that abstraction is an integral part of his country's traditional artistic aesthetic. Returning to Japan in 2011 (he now works and lives between Paris and Kyoto), he immersed himself in the masterpieces of traditional Japanese art, deepening his understanding and grasping their essence. His style has evolved, and now his creations are fully "a reflection of my soul," he says.
Rikizo
Yoshin Ogata
While RIKIZO chose France and Paris, it was in Italy that Yoshin Ogata, who came to Europe for academic studies, settled. He lived in Milan, Florence, and Rome, and then Carrara, where the sculptor became familiar with marble, a hard and demanding material that he adopted for compositions all dedicated to water, "witness to time and eternity."
At the origin of his research are very personal experiences dating back to his childhood and deeply rooted in his memory. They not only left their mark on his mind but also guided his thinking and artistic practice. In a long and patient process of working with form, he "tells the story" of the water droplet, the trickle, the wave, in an approach that is as much a mental process as physical work. "Water nourishes life, engenders transformation, and contains within it the concepts of birth and cycle," wrote the Italian art critic Filippo Rolla about him.
Present in many corners of the world where his monumental sculptures have found a home, Yoshin Ogata deploys the same strength, the same energy, and the same gentleness in his smaller works. Before us, marbles and a few bronzes laden with references, works full of symbols, reflecting the artist's attentiveness to this transfiguration of matter.
Yoshin Ogata
