Silver Flowers III by Kenjilo Nanao

This is a striking lithograph by modern Japanese artist Kenjilo Nanao. It is called Silver Flowers II and is a still life, although with a surrealist twist. Rather than a vase, the focus of the image is a Nautilus shell from which a pale flower emerges. The blossom of the flower mimics the shell as it emerges from a spiral to open. The flower is rendered in a pale ghostly manner adding to the unreal nature of the image. The shell and flower are suspended on a dark background with no visible means of support. These surreal still lifes are a favorite subject for the artist who takes everyday objects a juxtaposes them on colored backgrounds to intrigue the viewer. The lithographs are printed to the edge of the paper with no margin. The piece is in excellent condition with vivid colors and full margins. There is one small area at the lower right margin where there is a bit of pigment loss, but that appears to be part of the printing process. Otherwise, there are no tears, paper loss, stains, toning, or fading. It is signed Kenjilo Nanao in pencil lower right. The title is given in pencil lower center and the edition 26/31 lower left. It's a dramatic piece by this artist.

Kenjilo Nanao (1929-2013) was born in Japan. He began his studies after World War II and was struggling between art and economics. He initially studied at the Asagaya Art Academy from 1948 to 1951, but transferred to Nihon University completing a degree in economics 1953. He moved to the U.S. in 1960 and returned to art. He studied printmaking and graphic art at the California School of Fine Arts (now the San Francisco Art Institute), receiving both a BFA and MFA. His initially worked in printmaking, specifically lithography creating surrealist botanical and still life images. The colors used were said to be reminiscent of Japanese Shunga (Spring Picture) prints. Shunga prints featured erotic subjects which are seen in some of Nanao's work. It's interesting to speculate if the objects used in the still life works were meant as double entendre much as was speculated (and vehemently denied) by Georgia O'Keefe. He worked with the Tamarind Lithography Workshop in Los Angeles (now Tamarind Institute, New Mexico), which was founded to preserve and revive the knowledge and practice of lithography in the United States. Exposure to California Modernist painters led him to move away from Surrealism and printmaking to Abstract Expressionist painting. While still creating prints, he move toward monotypes that was more consistent with his painting. In addition to making art, he was an educator, holding a position as professor of art at California State University at Hayward for over 20 years. He exhibited extensively and his work is held in many museum collections including the Museum of Modern Art, N.Y.C., the Pasadena Art Museum, the Amon Carter Museum, the Cincinnati Museum of Art, and the Biblioteque National, Paris. His collected papers are held by the Smithsonian Institution's Archive for American Art.

Size: 1981
Price: $475
Size: 15.5 x 21 inches
Condition: Excellent
Medium: Lithograph
Subject: Surrealism

Shipping, handling and insurance is included for purchases within the US and Canada. We ship internationally. Please contact us for shipping cost and invoice information.