Exhibition Structure

Chapter 1: Space In-Between：Shizuko Yoshikawa
1　Early works—Sequence and Transformation

The exhibition will introduce some of Yoshikawa’s early works, created when she first changed course from design to art to begin her career as an artist. The square, three-dimensional reliefs, each made up of a collection of small, uneven surfaces, form an ongoing series differentiated by the colors of these surfaces. These works, Sequence and Transformation, belong to the Concrete Art movement that was passed down from Gerrit Rietveld (1888–1964), to the professors of the Ulm School of Design, including Max Bill (1908 – 94). Having acquired solid fundamental skills as a designer, Yoshikawa takes her first steps as an artist with these three-dimensional reliefs. From this starting point, Yoshikawa was able to realize her vision in architectural pieces, and her artistry blossomed she furthered her studies—moving from design to art.

• 

  Shizuko Yoshikawa
  r13 Transformation of the same cubic content of four colors in 11 sequences no. 4
  1973 – 74
  Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation
  Copyright and courtesy of the Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation

• 

  Shizuko Yoshikawa
  r14 Transformation of the same cubic content of four colors in 11 sequences no. 5
  1973 – 74
  Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation
  Copyright and courtesy of the Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation

• 

  Shizuko Yoshikawa
  r15 Transformation of the same cubic content of four colors in 11 sequences no. 6
  1973 – 74
  Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation
  Copyright and courtesy of the Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation

• 

  Shizuko Yoshikawa
  r16 Transformation of the same cubic content of four colors in 11 sequences no. 7
  1973 – 74
  Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation
  Copyright and courtesy of the Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation

• 

  Shizuko Yoshikawa
  r17 Transformation of the same cubic content of four colors in 11 sequences no. 8
  1973 – 74
  Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation
  Copyright and courtesy of the Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation

2 Expressing the ephemeral and atmospheric—Farbschatten [color shadow]

Having tackled the transformation and continuity of colored surfaces in Sequence and Transformation, Yoshikawa next begins working on a series, Farbschatten [color shadow], in which she applies color only to the narrow edges of the protrusions and recesses of the three-dimensional reliefs, rather than the surfaces. In the atelier she shares with Josef Müller-Brockmann, she mixes colors by adding tiny amounts of pigment, as if conducting a scientific experiment, and then applies them to the surfaces. The works in the Farbschatten [color shadow] series change in appearance depending on the viewing angle. The colors of the edges leave afterimages across the white surfaces, causing the appearance of the work to change from moment to moment. In this series, Yoshikawa moves away from traditional Concrete Art and begins to focus on the ephemeral and atmospheric as themes, based on the theory that color is relative, with the appearance changing depending on light, shadow, and the adjacent colors.

• 

  Shizuko Yoshikawa
  FARBSCHATTEN NO. 68
  1978 – 1979
  Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation
  Copyright and courtesy of the Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation

• 

  Shizuko Yoshikawa
  r44 farbschatten', stehobjekt no. 44
  1976 – 1979
  Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation
  Copyright and courtesy of the Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation

• 

  Shizuko Yoshikawa
  FARBSCHATTEN NO. 21
  1977
  Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation
  Copyright and courtesy of the Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation

3　The boundless energy of opposition and emptiness—Kosmische Gewebe [cosmic fabric]

Yoshikawa, who tackled how the perception of color changes through the three-dimensional reliefs of her Farbschatten [color shadow] series, next begins working on expression using the medium of a flat canvas. Using the cross as a motif, the point where the two lines intersect is left void—as if it is a hole—and then she makes these shapes bigger and smaller, layering them over and over again on the white canvas. Often, the arms of the crosses that are on the opposite sides of the interstices are painted with complementary colors. With these repeated opposing elements and voids, the pieces in this series take on a three-dimensional quality even though they are flat, and the insides are filled with an boundless, cosmic energy. The intricate effects of these hues and voids make the entire canvas appear to be enveloped in a mystical sublime light. This series was produced on canvases of various shapes and there are a large number of variations in existence.

• 

  Shizuko Yoshikawa
  m433 'kosmische gewebe' - strahlend - 3
  1991 – 1993
  Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation
  Copyright and courtesy of the Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation

• 

  Shizuko Yoshikawa
  m454 'kosmische gewebe' - fliessend 7
  1992 – 1995
  Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation
  Copyright and courtesy of the Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation

• 

  Shizuko Yoshikawa
  m528 'kosmische gewebe' - atmendes feld 19
  1999 – 2000
  Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation
  Copyright and courtesy of the Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation

4　Life force of the sun—Rome

When Josef Müller-Brockmann collapsed and died while traveling along the Great Wall of China, it was an enormous psychological blow to Shizuko Yoshikawa. Unable to bear staying in what had been their home and studio, resides in Rome during the winters over a three year period, working on her art there. One day, she is moved by the fiery life force of the sun that she sees in Rome and it gives her the strength to live again. She decides to take this as a theme to create new works. Her first painting depicts a bright red sun sinking into the horizon, appearing to be aflame. She then creates variations on this theme by changing the colors and the mode of expression. A shift can also be seen to the works based on the theme of the life force of the sun—which had so affected Yoshikawa—from the themes of colors and the cosmos found in her Kosmische Gewebe [cosmic fabric].

• 

  Shizuko Yoshikawa
  z606 a roma
  1998
  Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation
  Copyright and courtesy of the Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation

• 

  Shizuko Yoshikawa
  z637 a roma
  1998
  Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation
  Copyright and courtesy of the Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation

5　Roots and life—my silkroad and lebenspuls [pulse of life]

After returning to Switzerland from Rome, Yoshikawa produces a series of works that take the Silk Road as their theme. For Yoshikawa, the Silk Road was the ocean route that she took when she enrolled at the Ulm School of Design. Shizuko Yoshikawa had journeyed from Japan to Germany via the Suez Canal, and she uses the cross shapes from her Kosmische Gewebe [cosmic fabric] series to express the stars against the cobalt blue night sky, and the illumination that resides on the surface of the never-ending ocean. This cross motif disappears from the lebenspuls [pulse of life] series, to be replaced by buoyant dots scattered across the canvas. Pregnant with movement, the dots have an inner energy akin to that found in the Kosmische Gewebe [cosmic fabric] series, giving a sense of inner movement and vitality. Until this point, Yoshikawa had focused on themes concerning the energy of the natural world—the cosmos and the sun—but in her later years she turns her attention to her own inner life force as she continues to create art.

• 

  Shizuko Yoshikawa
  m688 'my silk road' - 54
  2005
  Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation
  Copyright and courtesy of the Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation

• 

  Shizuko Yoshikawa
  m764 'my silk road' - 117
  2010/2011
  Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation
  Copyright and courtesy of the Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation

• 

  Shizuko Yoshikawa
  m779 lebensplus 15
  2011
  Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation
  Copyright and courtesy of the Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation

• 

  Shizuko Yoshikawa
  m780 lebensplus 16
  2011/2012
  Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation
  Copyright and courtesy of the Shizuko Yoshikawa and Josef Müller-Brockmann Foundation

Chapter 2: Space In-Between：Josef Müller-Brockmann
1　Early works—For Rapperswil

Josef Müller-Brockmann was born and raised in Rapperswil, a town on Lake Zurich. This exhibition will present early works, including posters he created for his hometown, which is famous for its rose gardens. Before starting his career, Müller-Brockmann had made many self-portraits, sketches, and other drawings. But after studying at ETH Zurich and beginning his career as a designer, he begins creating posters that are compositions of illustrations and text on the page. This group of works also reflects the influence of his university professors and the graphic design of that era.

• 

  Josef Müller-Brockmann
  Rapperswil
  1937
  Nakanoshima Museum of Art, Osaka
  ©Museum für Gestaltung Zurich, Switzerland

• 

  Josef Müller-Brockmann
  The Swiss Stage Design Exhibition Poster
  1949
  Nakanoshima Museum of Art, Osaka
  ©Museum für Gestaltung Zurich, Switzerland

• 

  Josef Müller-Brockmann
  Zurich Tonhalle June Festival Concert Poster 　1951
  1951
  Nakanoshima Museum of Art, Osaka
  ©Museum für Gestaltung Zurich, Switzerland

2　Visual communication and photo collage

Müller-Brockmann was one of the first designers to incorporate photographs into posters. His series of posters for the Swiss Automobile Club is a prime example. Using photo-montage, he alters the proportions of the motifs to create impact. In postmodern design since the 1960s, the term "visual communication" has become a required design proposition. With the design proposition shifting from a time when creators sought to establish their own ideas about what design should be, towards how to convey this to the recipient, Müller-Brockmann’s work became a model for the next global trend in design.

• 

  Josef Müller-Brockmann
  Swiss Automobile Club
  1958
  Suntory Poster Collection (depositedin Nakanoshima Museum of Art,Osaka)
  ©Museum für Gestaltung Zurich, Switzerland

• 

  Josef Müller-Brockmann
  the Family of Man
  1958
  Nakanoshima Museum of Art, Osaka
  ©Museum für Gestaltung Zurich, Switzerland

3　Music and design

Müller-Brockmann’s first wife, Verena Brockmann, who died unexpectedly in a traffic accident, was a violinist and a member of the Orchester Zürich and several other orchestras in Zurich. This led Müller-Brockmann to the world of music, and over the course of his life he had a hand in creating many concert posters. A well-known example is the Beethoven poster that was introduced to Japan in 1958 by IDEA magazine. In the Musica Viva series, he combines grid system variations and typography with an exquisite sense of color to produce rich harmonies that are fitting for music posters.

• 

  Josef Müller-Brockmann
  Zurich Tonhalle, 4th extra concert, Beethoven Concert Poster
  1955
  ©Museum für Gestaltung Zurich, Switzerland

• 

  Josef Müller-Brockmann
  musica viva: Strawinsky Concert Poster
  1956
  Nakanoshima Museum of Art, Osaka
  ©Museum für Gestaltung Zurich, Switzerland

• 

  Josef Müller-Brockmann
  Zurich Tonhalle musica viva Concert Poster 　1972
  1972
  Nakanoshima Museum of Art, Osaka
  ©Museum für Gestaltung Zurich, Switzerland