IGAWA Takeshi
| present | Associate Professor, Saga University, Art and Regional Design |
| 2008 | Ph.D., Kyoto City University of Arts |
| 2005 | M.F.A., Kyoto City University of Arts |
| 2003 | B.F.A., Kyoto City University of Arts |
Solo Exhibitions
| 2018 | Gion KONISHI, Kyoto, Kyoto('15,'12,'11,'08) |
| 2017 | Galley Keifu, Kyoto ('14) |
| 2016 | Orie Art Gallery, Tokyo |
| 2013 | Line and Surface, Keiko Art International |
| 2012 | Kouichi Fine Arts, Osaka Abiesfirma, Kobe (’09) |
| 2010 | Gallery Kian, Kyoto (’05) |
| 2007 | Wacole Ginza Art Space, Tokyo |
| 2005 | WORKS OF URUSHI, ISHIDA TAISEISHA Hall, Kyoto (’04) |
Group Exhibitions
| 2018 | Urushi Nowadays, Nihonbashi Mitsukoshi, Tokyo Igawa Takeshi and Sakai Naoki, Gallery Aoian, Kyoto FuEiSho – Tan, Nihonbashi Takashimaya, Tokyo Art Meets Winter, Shimazu Seisakusho, Kyoto |
| 2017 | Hard Bories: Contemporary Japanese Lacquer Sculpture, Minneapolis Institute of Arts |
| Sculptures by Glass, Ceramic, Lacquer, Orie Art Gallery | |
| Loewe Foundation Craft Prize, Madrid, New York, Tokyo | |
| 2016 | URUSHI_ISM, Contemporary Lacquer from Japan, ESH Gallery, Milan IKI SUMISomé, Seiryukan Kyoto |
| 2015 |
Dialogue with Materials: Contemporary Japanese Arts an Crafts, Anadolu University, Eskisehir, Turkey Urushi Sculptures by KURIMOTO Natsuki, SASAI Fumie and IGAWA Takeshi, Sokyo Gallery, Kyoto Japan spirit ×15, ORIE GALLERY, Tokyo |
| 2014 | Dialogue with Materials: Contemporary Japanese Arts an Crafts, Ahmed Adnen Saygun Sanat Merkezi, Izmir, Turkey URUSHI: Couleurs et formes des Laques, Japonaises contemporaines, Mizen Fine Arts, Paris |
| 2012 | Igawa Takeshi and Gejo Hanako, Gallery Kian, Kyoto |
| 2011 | from Asuka to Nara, New Forms by Urushi, Itami Craft Center, Hyogo Contemporary Lacquer, Cavin Morris Gallery, New York, NY |
| 2010 | from Asuka to Nara, International Sculpture Exhibition, Daijoin Temple Garden Cultural Hall, Nara Craft and Life, Gallery Keifu, Kyoto |
| 2009 | SOFA New York Young Lacquer Artists, Wajima Museum of Lacuer Contemporary Japanese Lacquer, KEIKO Gallery, MA |
| 2008 | Cool Black, Daimaru Art Gallery, Tokyo SOFA Chicago Asahi Modern Craft Exhibition |
| 2007 | FORMATIVE ARTS: WORKS OF WOOD, URUSHI, AND BAMBOO, Miyama Thatched-roof Museum, Kyoto |
| 2006 | URUSHI SHOW: DRINKING VESSELS FOR SAKE OR GREEN TEA, Machi-ya (a Merchant Family-house), Kyoto FLORAL FESTIVAL: AN EXHIBITION BY THREE ARTISTS, Gion KONISHI, Kyoto TALENTE 2006, the International Trades Fair in Munich, Germany |
| 2005 | PROSPECTS FOR LACQUER CLAY: WORKS BY ARTISTS IN KYOTO, Gallery NISHIKAWA, Kyoto THE ISHIKAWA INTERNATIONAL URUSHI EXHIBITION 2005, Meitetsu M' ZA, Kanazawa ONE HUNDRED ARTISTS WORKS OF DRAWINGS, ISHIDA TAISEISHA Hall, Kyoto SELECTED ARTISTS IN KYOTO 2005: New Wave, The Museum of Kyoto, Kyoto |
| 2004 | Kyo Ryu Art Project, Okinawa ARTISTS WORKS IN BLACK, ISHIDA TAISEISHA Hall, Kyoto |
| 2017 | EGrand Prix, 3rd Triennale of KOGEI in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Finalist, Loewe Foundation Craft Prize, Madrid |
| 2015 | Excellent Award, 55th Japan Craft Exhibition, Tokyo |
| 2014 | 41st, Saga Arts and Culture Award, Saga Takeuchi Sawako Award, 53th Japan Craft Exhibition, |
| 2012 | Grand Prize, 52th Craft Exhibition, Tokyo |
| 2011 | Silver Prize, Cheongju International Craft Biennale, Korea |
| 2009 | Grand Prize, Ishikawa International URUSHI Exhibition, Ishikawa Umehara Award for Doctor Thesis, Kyoto City University of Arts New Artist Award, Kyoto City Art Exhibition |
| 2008 | Excellent Award, Asahi Modern Craft Exhibition |
| 2007 | Grand Prize for Elegance, ELEGANT SHAPES: WORKS OF URUSHI IN OUR DAILY LIFE, The MIYAKO MESSE, Kyoto |
| 2006 | TALENTE—Rize for Design, TALENTE 2006, THE INTERNATIONAL TRADES FAIR, Munich, Germany |
| 2005 | Mayor's Prize, Annual Exhibition of Kyoto City University of Arts, The Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art, Kyoto Award for Excellence, The 45th Japan Crafts Exhibition, Tokyo |
| 2003 | Mayor’s Prize, Annual Exhibition of Kyoto City University of Arts, The Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art, Kyoto |
| 2002 | Hiradate Prize, Annual Exhibition of Kyoto City University of Arts, The Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art, Kyoto |
- Minneapolis Institute of Arts
- The Riz-Carlton Hotel, Kyoto
- JAL International Terninal Lounge, Haneda Airport, Tokyo
IGAWA Takeshi, who lives and works in Saga City and is Associate Professor at Saga University in Kyushu, uses the most traditional of Japanese craft materials, but is one of the most closely watched young artist in the field of contemporary lacquer art because of his daring and expressive sculptures.
Known as urushi in Japanese, lacquer is the sap of a tree related to the sumac family, and has been used in Japan as an adhesive and a coating (including decoration) for more than 9000 years.
Among the distinctive features of lacquer are the gloss and depth of the surface and the pleasing tactile experience, which IGAWA features in his sculptures.
“I don’t intend to create meaningful forms which conveys my messages. I always think about expressing the beauty of the lacquer as a material. Unlike other materials used for three dimensional art objects, like ceramic, stone, wood, metal, lacquer cannot produce a solid form because it is only liquid. However, lacquer is a unique coating or painting material, and when applied to different forms it produces distinctively different appearances. For example, there are dramatic differences between concave and convex surfaces when compared to flat surfaces. Reflections and the play of light and shadow on the surfaces are always changing the appearance of a piece. To create the most beautiful and pleasing forms, the lines are critical. The edges are the first decisions I must make when I begin carving the urethane form, but at the same time, I need to imagine the curve of all the lines of a form when it is completed. If the lines and the surfaces harmonize perfectly, I feel that I have fully expressed the beauty of the lacquer as a material.” IGAWA Takeshi
Traditionally lacquer work has dozens of layers of lacquer applied over a period of months, and each of the final layers is polished, giving the finished piece strength and a beautiful gloss. Generally there can be as many as 50 different steps in the completion of a single lacquer piece. For the inaugural online exhibition of Keiko Art International, we have created a four minute film featuring IGAWA and his work which illustrates the basic steps in the process of creating lacquer sculpture; however the entire process is so lengthy the film necessarily eliminates many of the steps. Seven of IGAWA’s recent pieces can also be found on the exhibition page.