When I was in the lower grades of elementary school, when I had a drawing assignment in art class, I was able to draw a path using perspective that my mother taught me, while my classmates were worried about how to write. Also, when I drew a scene of Nikolai Hall with art, it was published in a major newspaper. When I exhibited at the Nippon Exhibition in that flow, I became the youngest person to win the award, and the people around me were surprised. I had a talent for drawing since I was a student, and when I drew without hesitation, I often received praise from my teachers and friends.
After graduating from Tokyo University of the Arts, I moved to New York. Inspired by pop art pioneer Andy Warhol and others, he returned to Japan and got a job at a design office at a major department store. After that, I became independent in my early 30s and was in charge of advertising for major media outlets. After many years of teaching design at university and graduate school, he began his own creative career at the age of 70.
InterviewFeatured Artist
The direction of my creative activities is completely different from when I was a designer now. If you have a sponsor, there will be restrictions such as layout and standards. Of course, designing as a business generates money, so it is natural to create according to the sponsor's wishes, but for me, it was nerve-boggling. Because of this, I wanted to create expressions without constraints, and I became independent. After that, I worked as a teacher in design and color studies at universities and graduate schools, and after retiring, I began to create abstract paintings as my heart turned to them. I think my current creative activities can be said to be pure art.
In fact, my current creation is for mental health. It's a stress reliever. For my physical and mental health, I paint without getting caught up in anything. I am currently 82 years old, but as I got older, I became attracted to gods and Buddhas. On my days off, I occasionally visit shrines and temples, but I also get inspiration that leads to my creations.
I once exhibited my geometric works in a solo exhibition in France, where I was evaluated as similar to "Cubism". I was influenced by the works of Picasso, Braque, and in Japan, the works of Seiji Togo and Taro Okamoto, so it may be a similar expression.
The "No Leakage" I painted last year is the most personal work. I was able to express what I wanted to appeal to, both in color and shape. Non-leakage is a Buddhist term that refers to the absence of impurities and afflictions. I think that the state of mind that tries to continue to grow while being misled by afflictions is like life itself.
As I get older, my physical strength declines, so I think that drawing large paintings will gradually become a burden on my body, but I would like to continue to use abstract expression in the future. There is no end in sight to the expression I am working on now.
I think you can enjoy the changes in geometric forms if you look at them from various perspectives. As one perspective, I would be happy if you could remember the feeling of wanting to be grateful to the gods and Buddhas.
After a rich career as a designer, he entered the path of fine art. Expressions that are freed from shackles reflect the human mind itself, which continues to grow while facing afflictions. The kaleidoscopic world created by geometric forms and colors shows infinite expressions depending on the viewer's mental state and perspective. Toru Yoshioka still says, "There is no end in sight to expression." His spirit of exploration and passion for creation will not diminish and will continue to deepen in the future. I have high hopes for his future success.