Takeshi Haguri: A Wood Sculpting Master
Wide-eyed visitors admired Takeshi Haguri’s imposing sculptures at this year’s Art Fair Tokyo.
Large-scaled, each sculpture measures about one meter tall but their impressive character gives them more height. Haguri gives them much more than just intricate tattoos, created by his apprentice Miki Nagasaki; his pieces’ intimidating expression grants them realism, adding a fresh gust of life into his art.
Takeshi Haguri was born in 1957 in Nagoya. He graduated from Aichi University of Arts, studying sculpture, in 1984. He has held several exhibitions since the 90s and has participated in Vogtland International Sculpture Symposium’s group exhibition in Germany in 2000. His most popular works are carved out of wood, but he also works with aluminum for outdoor sculptures.
Traditional japanese aspects are translated into Haguri’s sculptural language. His recent oeuvres are portraying men covered with tebori tattoos wearing a fundoshi (cloth undegarment) à la yakuza. These characters are also wearing wooden masks over their tough look, nowadays seen sold in matsuri stalls but were originally used in Noh theater.
However, the tastefully disproportionate bodies of the sculptures adds as comic relief and represents Haguri’s artist touch. His use of camphor wood also adds to the mix of authenticity-meets-modernity. Additionally, he sculpts theatrical characters from the Edo period, carefully painted with hues of bright reds, oranges and blues.
Still based in his hometown, this sculptor’s talent is seen through all the details of his craft: the swiftness of each sculpture’s immobile movements, the curves and cavities of their muscles, their personality shining in their eyes, etc. People had a chance to see his art in person last weekend at the Art Fair Tokyo, with thanks to gallery Toki-no-Wasuremono.
About the Author:
Mizuki Khoury
Born in Montreal, based in Tokyo. Sabukaru’s senior writer and works as an artist under Exit Number Five.
