Izumi Kato's Not-Quite-Human Figures Are Apparitions of Coexistence in Perrotin's Inaugural Los Angeles Show

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Untitled, 2023

Photo by Kei Okano
Courtesy of the artist and Perrotin ©2023 Izumi Kato

Perrotin inaugurates their new Los Angeles location with an exhibition of work by Japanese artist Izumi Kato.

Imagine, for a moment, that Izumi Kato’s figurative subjects have a life of their own. From the artist’s studio in Tokyo, his subjects have traversed the ocean, crossing the Pacific to emerge in Los Angeles. Making their way to Pico Boulevard, they appear utterly at home in Southern California—a place where one can encounter the extremes of both prehistoric geology and urban modernity, where tar pits coexist with gleaming new buildings, where eternal ocean cliffs abut concrete highway. These binaries of ancient and modern, geological and man-made, are dualities that also coexist in Kato’s work, making his exhibition a fitting choice for Perrotin’s inaugural exhibition in Los Angeles.

Izumi Kato’s exhibition is on view through March 23 @ Perrotin in Los Angeles, 5036 W. Pico Boulevard

A Thing of Beauty Is A Joy Forever: A Fascinating New Monograph Explores the Life and Work of Underrated British Designer James Irvine

A fascinating new monograph, published by Phaidon, explores the life and work of design legend James Irvine (1958–2013). Indeed, you may not know Irvine by name, but his designs have had a profound influence in the world of both home furnishing as well as technology – he has also had a profound impact on other designers. On top of a beautiful offering of unpublished sketches and images from Irvine’s archives, this new comprehensive tome also includes texts and narratives by contemporary designers who were friends and that worked closely with the iconoclastic designer. For instance, Jasper Morrison tells the story of going to school with Irvine at the Royal Academy of Art and learning of his move to Milan to work for Olivetti – there is also a story about Irvine falling out of a window naked in Barcelona. Another designer, Naoto Fukasawa talks about meeting one of Irvine’s chairs before actually meeting the man – and based on the lines of the chair having a prescient notion of the designer’s friendliness as a person. There is also a great dialogue between Marc Newson, who recently signed on as a design consultant for Apple, and design critic Francesca Picchi on Irvine’s contributions to Olivetti and Toshiba – namely a computer device that looks like an iPad, well before its invention.  From his early work with Ettore Sottsass’ “Associati” to his more mature works for Japanese home and office goods retailer Muji, like a USB powered desk fan or a simple aluminum pen case, this monograph may be the corner piece that helps complete  the jigsaw puzzle of contemporary commercial design. The book is available to purchase here. Follow Autre on Instagram for updates: @autremagazine

Shunga: Erotic Art in a Comparative Context

Series: The Prelude to Desire, 1799, Utamaro

It was a time when Japan was ruled by military dictators called Shoguns and much of the East was just large swaths of bucolic countryside, with flowing grass, and a certain mysticism you can only associate with "the Orient."  For centuries it was like this. Seemingly perfect and serene. The artistic output from this time is extremely recognizable: ornate woodcuts painted on scrolls, called ukiyo-e, that depicted the quotidien routine of Japanese life: work, play, love, theater, history, and  pleasure.  Shunga, a Japanese form of erotic art, that most think was deemed immoral, but was actually morally accepted, was common and many artists, without risking their reputations, dipped their pens in this type of ink. It was all the same–work and sex–it still followed a classifiable aesthetic of the quotidien. It begs the question–what did you do last night?

Series: The Prelude to Desire, 1799, Utamaro

This weekend, the University of London's School of Oriental and African studies will hold a workshop and a list of speakers on the topic of Shunga art.  Talks are ranging and include introductions on the history of Shunga art  to how to present and curate Shunga art. The talks are free and is being held at the Brunei Gallery May 20 and 21.  www.soas.ac.uk/