Interview with Sotaro Takanami

Reflecting on the significant individuals who inspired your early interest in painting, could you provide an in-depth exploration of how their influence not only guided your decision to pursue art but also continues to resonate in your work today? Could you discuss how specific elements of their mentorship or artistic philosophy are reflected in your creative process and how these influences have manifested in specific works you have produced?

My father wanted to be a painter and often took me to sketch when I was about 5 years old.

However, my father was an alcoholic, so I started to realize it when I was about 8 years old, and because of it, I was ashamed of it, and because of it, I suffered from diseases of the nerves and internal organs, and by the time I was about 17 years old, I only weighed about 30 kg. I went to the doctor many times, but the herbal medicine worked and I started to recover, so I started going to the gym to get healthy.

I think it was January when I was 17 years old. I was looking at an art book in between gyms and a stranger asked me, "Do you like art?" When I told him that I was drawing in my high school’s art club, he said he would look at my paintings, so I went to his house two weeks later on Sunday. Camellias were placed in a vase. I was told to draw as I saw it, first to paint it thinly with Aureolin and Biljan, and then to draw only with lines with Burnt Shenna.

I was told to do that, and I followed it, and two hours later he came to me and said, "You're a genius, you have to be a painter”, he said. I think that’s why I started this path. He was a second-year student at Tokyo University of the Arts, studying Rembrandt. His brother was active as an abstract painter at that time.

A year later, I entered Tama Art University, but from that time on, my relationship with that person began to fade and I was immersed myself in the path of painting. I was not influenced by his paintings at all.

Over the course of your career, from your first exhibition to the upcoming monumental solo exhibition at the Takashimaya Archives Museum, how have pivotal life events and professional milestones influenced the evolution of your artistic style? Could you describe the transformation in terms of changes in technique, thematic focus, or philosophical approach to your work? How do these changes map onto the timeline of your personal life and artistic journey?

At the age of 28, I met Tyozou Yoshii and was allowed to live for six month at Yoshii’s residence（the former residence of Hideo Kobayashi, famous as one of Japan's leading writers, mainly Van Gogh's letters) in Kamakura Yukinoshita. Twenty-four years later, in 2002, he held a solo exhibition of hand-colored woodblock prints at the Yoshii Gallery in Paris. This led to the publication of ”12 Monkey Haiku “ by RMN and an invitation to the Elysee Palace. For that solo exhibition, we received great support from Mr. Yoshikazu Tani, former president of the Japan Patent Attorneys Association.

I think I was about 35 years old. When the first exhibition of hand-colored woodblock prints was held in a small gallery in Kyobashi, Mr. T a friend of the gallery owner, the director of the Française Collection, bought me a small fruit opus and hung it on the wall of his office.

The president, Mr. Jacques Berge, came to visit Japan, saw my work, and he sed to Mr. T to bring on Mr. Sotaro Takanami because he would make money, so this is the path by which I was able to introduce “Nature” in Tokyo and Paris.

By the way, the owner of Kyobashi Gallery was an employee of Yoshii Gallery. Also, at this O Gallery, the chairman of Magazine House Mr. Tatsuo Shimizu came to see my paintings through the introduction of a friend. At the time, I was obsessed with hand-colored woodcuts.

Mr. Shimizu saw my work and told his wife when he returned home, "It's a look like combination of Van Gogh and Shiko Munakata.” Mr. Shimizu introduced me to Osaka Takashimaya, which led to a retrospective exhibition at the Osaka Takashimaya Historical Museum.

My solo exhibitions at Takashimaya have spread to Osaka, Yokohama, Nihonbashi, sinjuku , Nagoya, kyoto, Okayama, Yonago, takasaki, and I has had more than 100 solo exhibitions. When I was 40 years old, I met Mr. Nakazawa, the head of the Takashimaya Art Department, who understood my very well and was actively involved in a retrospective exhibition at the Takashimaya Archives Museum in Osaka. This retrospective exhibition was the first exhibition of living artists in the 113 years since the founding of the Takashimaya Art Club, so it was visited by many media and audiences, and it was well received, making it the most memorable retrospective exhibition for me.

Also, when I was about 50 years old, I met Mr. hideaki Tomiyama (1984 Olympics wrestling gold medalist in the 57 kg class, current president of the Japan Wrestling Association) who introduced me to Hakuhosho seki, the 69th yokozuna of I was asked to design a wrestler’s ornamental apron, which was broadcast many times on NHK. We received a great response.

Also, when I was 61 years old, the Sasakawa Peace Foundation published ” THE BEGINNING OF SPACE “ for the Middle East, which I made it info an art book a picture deeply rooted in people's hearts because there were many wars in the Middle East. Later, Amin Pakhti, former Minister of State for Human Rights of Iraq and Sheikh Abdul Aziz Alinuaimi Mr. son of Foskrayes in Ajman Province U.A.E, also came to my solo exhibition and enjoyed my meal. The theme that Mr. Abdul Aziz and I share is “Soul Connection”.

Mr. Tatsuo Shimizu・Mr. Chozo Yoshii・Mr. Yoshikazu Tani・Mr. kazuo Nakazawa・Mr. hideaki Tomiyama, and many others have been greatly involvedin my life and guided me, but I can't write them all down, so I’ll Leave them at this point. Anyway, I am happier to meet someone who can communicate with my soul than money or fame.

With a career that spans cultural capitals such as Tokyo and Paris and engages a global audience, how do you navigate the cultural expectations and artistic preferences of Eastern and Western audiences in your work? What challenges and opportunities have these differing perspectives presented in the creation and exhibition of your art?

I think it is very difficult to understand painting in depth. Behind the picture is the person who painted it. And the joy, sorrow, and pain of that human being are all expressed in the painting.

Conversely, a person from any country those who can understand will understand. I believe that painting is a universal language.

Throughout your career, you have noted the influence of various artists on your work. Could you delve deeper into how these figures have shaped your approach to painting? What particular aspects of their work do you strive to embody or perhaps actively challenge in your own creations? How do these influences align with or differ from your personal artistic trajectory?

I think I was greatly influenced by the painters who came before me. The first is “The Sower at Sunset” of Van Gogh.

The painting conveys a sense of anxiety, strength, intense emotions and cool.

And Monet's vivid colors, I was fascinated by these two when I was 18 years old.

And at the institute for entering the university, I learned How to see things of Cézanne, to see the colors of Bonnard, especially to see the colors inside the shadows.

After entering Tama Art University, he painted Picasso's painting changes, Matisse's decorativeness, a view of themes that capture Renoir's daily life, Modigliani-style long-necked women and Utrillo-style white buildings. In addition, the beauty of Morandi’s quiet paintings and the overflowing sadness of Rembrandt’s later years are also among Japan painters, I like Yasuo Kuniyoshi.

I was interested in the change of colors and themes. He was also greatly influenced by the paintings of Shigeru Aoki・Toshiyuki Hasegawa is a talent different from Aoki, Ryuzaburo Umehara was a star in the art world in Japan when I was young, Kazumasa Nakagawa, and Takeshi Hayashi.

At the Mr. Chozo Yoshii Residence, I learned about the sacredness and strong individuality of Rouault, the beauty of Tessai’s ink and the changes that make his paintings better as he gets older, and the way of painting after Picasso, such as Basquiat, Kooning, and Rothko, Francis Bacon.

It's been strange since I was over 50 years old, I can't allow my art sensibilities to resemble another. And I feel like I’m gradually coming into my own path. I’m aiming for a painting of myself that doesn't belong to anyone else.

What initially motivated you to begin exhibiting your work at international art fairs, and how has this exposure influenced your artistic perspective or the reception of your work on a global scale? What insights or revelations have you encountered through your interactions with an internationally diverse audience?

In 2019, I exhibited at an art fair in LA from Yoshii Gallery, and at that solo exhibition, I met Mr. Gregorian Serge of New York Artifact and was offered a solo exhibition in 2021, and I think my work overseas expanded from there. What I felt at the art fair was that of course there was a sense of tension among the deceased masters, Antique Shops, and first-class artists from Basel and Miami, but there were many works that I was not interested in, and I strongly felt that I to pursue my own path more and more. After all, I hope present my work shoulder to shoulder with interested artists and painters from around the world.

In your publication "The Beginning of Space: The Beginning of The Gods," you address expansive philosophical concepts such as space and divinity. How do these themes interplay with your artistic work? Could you share how your personal beliefs or philosophical inquiries have influenced the narratives and symbols present in your paintings?

I believe that everyone is given a little god when they are born. And I think that a person who can grow a small god while having a dialogue with the outside god (the god of the universe) in the process of living is a talented person. When I'm painting, I often hear from the outside god telling me to draw like this, and the brush moves naturally, like a sleepwalker, and I take the tube and move forward without thinking about the color. I often feel sad when I am alive, and at such times, my sensitivity Sharp, and I feel that my world is so beautiful. The theme is the feeling of feeling such a thing.

The theme of the painting is the sky, clouds, wind, flowers, and human drama that I saw at that time.

I feel like when I was younger, I developed friendships and had a lot of dramas. If you're over 40, isn't it a repetitive daily life. That's very hard for me. But when I paint, I make new discoveries almost every day, and I feel that I am alive at that time. So now I don't know if I live to paint or paint to live, but I don't feel the meaning of life if the act of painting is not there. I don't think I can solve the unknown X in the painting even if I live for another 100 years, so I cherish the little time I have left.

Over the years, you have created a vast and impactful portfolio. Could you discuss one or two pieces that hold a particularly profound personal or emotional significance for you? What stories do these pieces tell, and why do they hold a special place in your collection?

When I draw any work, I think that this is my last work, especially after I am over 50 years old. After graduating from Tama Art University, I changed my career from oil painting, hand-colored woodblock prints, and oil paintings, but in oil painting, I felt that my style matured after the age of 50. Since then, the way I have seen things has changed from what I used to see. How to find a theme, how to compose a picture, how to state your mind when you are concentrating. Among them, if I had to name a work that left a lasting impression on me, it would be the “Law of the Universe” of hand-colored woodblock prints. It represents the sun, moon, rain, and jungle necessary for living things to live, and is also a symbol of human society.

I have made more than 1,000 hand-colored woodblock prints. This work is near the end of the hand-colored woodblock print. After that, I felt repetition and became immersed in the world of oil painting.

I went back to oil painting and started with a thin painting, but the paint gradually thickened, and the culmination was the blue dots of the F30 dew grass and the Asiatic Dayflower series, which I painted when I was about 60 years old. Nowadays, there are works that have gone from 20 kg to 40 kg in size 30. That's because I hear people asking me to do more of this, so in that sense, the F30's Asiatic Dayflower and blue dots are a work that remains strongly in my memory. The “Asiatic Dayflower” series is the when I was taking a walk It was an impression that struck me when I saw it blooming in the gutter at the corner of the road.

By the way, this artwork was widely introduced in color in the culture section of the Japan Economic Newspaper. What did you like about this painting to art reporter Mr. K ? When I asked him, he said, "I'm only interested in interesting things. After that, "THE BIGINNING OF SPACE" was one of the most important works, because there was no end in sight even when I drew it, and the next image came to me, and I connected about 30 sheets to a width of about 30 meters. This is an image of looking at the bottom of the sea while snorkeling. It was like the beginning of the universe.

Given your extensive use of traditional painting techniques alongside contemporary themes, how do you determine which techniques or mediums best convey the messages or emotions you wish to express in your new pieces? What motivates your selection of materials and methods, and how do they serve your broader artistic vision?

I'm alive and I'm always sad and frustrated and hungry for something. I have a grim reaper and an angel in me.

The only way to keep myself alive is to paint. Drawing is like drinking water when you're thirsty. That's why I don't pay much attention to the way I express my paintings. I just have to draw everything that is there. The way of expression is taught by the strong desire to draw. To be a little more precise, when you start painting, everyone starts drawing with an image as a starting point. But in my case, that image quickly breaks down, and I start hearing the voice of heaven. That's how I express my paintings. About 1 in 100 times I succeed with the first image, though.

Looking forward, how do you envision the future of your artistic endeavors? Are there particular themes, techniques, or collaborations you are eager to explore in the near future? How do you anticipate your art will evolve in response to current and emerging artistic trends and societal changes?

I don't care about the trends and information of the times at all. Anyway, I just continue painting. And if I don't have something I've never drawn before, something discovery new, there's no point in painting for me. I feel a sense of rejection at repetition. In Japan, solo exhibitions are incorporated until death, so I do it to live. I'm grateful for that. Right now, my last challenge is to figure out how my paintings will be perceived by people around the world. That's why I'm grateful to have a place to express myself in this way.

As an artist with a significant influence and a lengthy career, what kind of legacy do you hope to leave behind in the art world and for future generations of artists? How do you plan to contribute to the development and mentorship of emerging talents within the field of painting? What values or practices do you hope to impart to those who follow in your footsteps?

I don't give gallery talks or teach at all, but I think that no matter how much I teach in my experience, no matter how much I teach, people who are not good will not be good, and talented people will naturally come out into the world. The important thing is to make a hole in the circle of your limits and make that hole as big as possible. The reason is that people are moved and empathized by that large crevice. That's where the romance. Everything I say feel is in the artwork. Artwork is my legacy. Finally, a word for those who are aiming to become painters: Do you really want to draw? Are you prepared to sacrifice something important to become a painter? Ask yourself: And if you want to be a painter no matter what, please continue to draw for 15 years, even if you don't have anything in the process. If you do that, someone will recognize you. and I would like to thank everyone who gave me this place where I can talk about my thoughts.