Yozo Ukita

Yozo Ukita (b. 1924 in Osaka, Japan; died in 2013) was an early member of the Gutai Art Association, from 1955 to 1964. His works at that time were in the Informel style, using thick layers of paint to emphasize the texture. Ukita was also the editor of a children's poetry magazine called "Kirin", where he commissioned the cover picture from Jiro Yoshihara, and worked on the texts for the "Gutai" magazine, which was distributed all over the world.

 

After leaving the Gutai movement, Ukita took some time off from his artistic career, but resumed his activities after a residency in Germany, shifting his work to a unique style of clear colors and simple, bold compositions.

 

Ukita pursued his own unique "objects" as proof of his own existence. His creative drive continued to grow, as evidenced by his one-year residency in Forussa, Finland, when he was in his 70s, where he produced and exhibited his works, which became simpler and more fluid. He sadly passed away in 2013. Ukita's studio, located on the site of a former sack factory, had long served as an art school for children and people with difficulties and disabilities.