Saburo Murakami

Fifties to Early Sixties

The oldest work in the exhibition dates from 1953, which was made during the years of Zero-kai. It is one of the first non-figurative paintings Murakami ever made. Rather small in size, this abstract work with natural hues of grey and brown has visible brush strokes and a rough surface texture. In this stage of his oeuvre, Murakami applied several layers of paint in an almost excessive way. Early Gutai works are exhibited alongside this canvas. These paintings have a similar amorphous texture as Work (1953), though works that were created between 1955 and the mid-1960s stress the passage of time by retaining traces of violent actions and dynamic changes, sharing a commonality with the kami-yaburi (paper breakthrough) performances. From the late 1950s to 1960s, the artist experimented with relief-like works, attaching pieces of wood, thick plaster, or other materials to raise the surface. He also splashed paint across the canvas and employed dynamic brushstrokes.

'Paper-Breaking' Events

The same year that Murakami became a Gutai member, he drew major attention because of his kami-yaburi performances. The first four paper-breaking events happened in the span of a week: Six Holes (October 18, 1955), Entrance (October 19, 1955), Jumping Down (October 22, 1955), and From a Box (October 25, 1955). The last one he ever performed was called Exit and took place in 1994. In these events the artist, using his body's momentum, busted through large sheets of kraft paper that were stretched between a frame, tearing the screen-like objects while doing so. Sometimes he mounted many consecutive panels after each other like a tunnel, other times he slashed just one paper sheet at the time.

It was Murakami's theoretical interest that lead him to these paper breakthroughs that are internationally renowned as pioneering examples of performance art. Through the investigation of change and inevitability, he searched to unify time and space, two concepts that are divided by rational thinking, but become joined together in the sphere of action. The artist was not all that interested in keeping his paper break works in a physical form after the fact, which underlines that the paper-breaking performances were a way to focus on the here and now. He wanted to encourage viewers to rethink their assumptions about art by questioning the conventions of the medium, authorship, art making, and art observing.

Another aspect of the paper-breaking events leans into Murakami's attention for works that "were an inquiry into nothingness and stem from a desire to encounter the void". This reminds us of Yves Klein's, Saut dans le vide (Leap into the Void), a photomontage dating from October 1960. This picture shows Klein jumping off a wall, arms stretched, seemingly awaiting a free fall on the curb. The sheet that safely caught him in reality, however, was removed from the picture. Though similar in spirit (Klein's fascination for the subject was derived from the Zen concept of the Void) and only five years apart, there is an important difference between both artists' performances. While Klein's 1960's Saut dans le vide was "photoshopped" and only to be seen in the picture, the Paper-Breaking actions of Murakami in 1955 were performed in front of a live audience.

Sixties to Late Gutai

The third part of the exhibition shows paintings from the early sixties until 1970. Though work from the early and the late sixties seem to be in contrast with each other, they share the same spirit of exploring new horizons. While paintings from the early sixties still have more similarities with Murakami's work from the fifties, they already show a tendency to cleaner lines and more visually striking, vivid colours. At the end of the sixties, Murakami leaned towards paintings with simple shapes and large colour planes, often using only two or three contrasting shades. Brush strokes became simpler, which gave way to a smoother and less tactile surface, as opposed to the former multi-layered approach. Certain recurring lines, forms, and box-shapes (the latter hinting at the framing of the void) show the repetition of an action.

Concerning the paper-breaking performance, Six Holes (1955), Jiro Yoshihara remarked that Murakami acted at least somewhat deliberately when he tore the final hole. This comment struck Murakami as an important problem within his creation process, so from then on, he decided to think as little as possible about things. Later in his career, his works merged further with minimal techniques and performance acts. Murakami's art became more and more conceptual, and less and less object-based. This was of course obvious through his performances, but he also reflected this evolved mindset in his paintings.