Giant Robot Store and GR2 News
In this article, graphics legend Tadanori Yokoo does talk about his switch to art. It’s amazing however that despite is long career and influence in culture, that’s he’s not more widely regarded outside of Japan. Most of his well known pieces are his graphics works, which span decades. He’s done albums, movie posters and also fine art. He’s been doing fine art since 1981, and has a following for his works there too. Although the article is also featuring his current works, it still leans towards the posters and graphics which he is still most known. It’s great to see a person switch from being at a peak in a career to something that can be looked at so critically. (Japan Times – Tadanori Yokoo)
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If you have never heard of Tadanori Yokoo, please allow us to introduce you. He is perhaps the preeminent Japanese graphic designer of the 20th century, even though he officially retired from that business in 1981 to pursue painting. At the link, you’ll be able to feast your eyes on a series of graphic designs Yokoo did for various exhibitions and events in the late 1960s. We find these images striking, and highly original. Yet, they are also a little strange in that they are very Japanese yet also possess that sort of Haight Street/Peter Max aesthetic which was so common in graphic and promotional design during that era. Yokoo has been compared to Max, and also described as the Japanese Andy Warhol. We think these comparisons are unfair, as Yokoo’s graphic design work possesses a density and richness which work by Max and Warhol, in particular, often lack. (50 Watts blog – Yokoo Graphics Gallery)
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