The Upcoming
  • Cinema & Tv
    • Movie reviews
    • Show reviews
    • Interviews
    • Film festivals
      • Berlin
      • Cannes
      • Sundance London
      • Venice
      • London
  • Music
    • Live music
    • Album reviews
    • Interviews
  • Food & Drinks
    • News & Features
    • Restaurant & bar reviews
    • Interviews & Recipes
  • Theatre
    • Fringe
    • Vault Festival
    • Interviews
  • Art
  • Travel & Lifestyle
  • Interviews
  • Fashion & Beauty
    • Accessories
    • Beauty
    • News & Features
    • Shopping & Trends
    • Tips & How-tos
    • Fashion weeks
      • London Fashion Week
      • London Fashion Week Men’s
      • New York Fashion Week
      • Milan Fashion Week
      • Paris Fashion Week
      • Haute Couture
  • Join the team
    • Editorial unit
    • Our writers
    • Join the team
    • Join the mailing list
    • Support us
    • Contact us
  • Competitions
  • Facebook

  • Twitter

  • Instagram

  • YouTube

  • RSS

Culture Art

Souzou: Outsider Art from Japan at the Wellcome Collection

Souzou: Outsider Art from Japan at the Wellcome Collection | Exhibition review
28th March 2013
Avatar photo
Melanie Weaver
Avatar
Melanie Weaver
28 March 2013

Souzou: Outsider Art from Japan is this year’s spring exhibition at the Wellcome Collection. In keeping with past exhibitions, Souzou features a large amount of works: over 300 pieces from 46 artists, originating from 12 different prefectures across Japan, all of whom have been diagnosed with cognitive, developmental or behavioural disorders, or mental illnesses.

The word Souzou cannot be translated into English, but in Japanese it carries two meanings: “creation” and “imagination”. Both words are embodied by the pieces on show, which are described as outsider art: the raw art referred to in French artist Jean Dubuffet’s theory of art brut. It is art created by individuals without formal training, acting upon their creative impulses without the aim of producing work for a specific audience.

All of the Souzou artists work within social welfare facilities in Japan and their art reveals their individual histories and passions. Some of the pieces are the outcome of personal rituals, for example Komei Bekki, whose piece Untitled (1980-84) consists of 200 small clay objects, prefers to work alone in his shared studio, in the evenings, after the others have left. He begins his work by removing his clothes and then putting them on again inside out, and sometimes shapes the clay with his mouth. Sakiko Kono’s collection of fabric dolls represent her friends and the people who work at the facility where she lives, while Hiroyuki Komatsu’s drawings depict scenes from his favourite television shows.

The exhibition includes works in a wide range of media, however, most of the pieces are constructed using non-specialist materials that are easily acquired: cardboard, graph paper and even pyjamas. One particularly stunning piece is Shota Katsube’s tiny army consisting of 300 soldiers and imagined creatures, all fashioned from metallic bag ties.

The last room of the exhibition contains videos interviews with several of the featured artists talking about their backgrounds and practices. Their stories are fascinating and sometimes saddening, yet incredibly inspiring.

Souzou brings together a colourful, energetic collection of works. The concept has clearly been well-considered, making for a different and innovative show that is well worth a visit.

★★★★★

Melanie Weaver

Souzou: Outsider Art from Japan is at the Wellcome Collection until 30th June 2013. For further information visit the gallery’s website here.

Related Itemsreview

More in Art

Impressionists on Paper: Degas to Toulouse-Lautrec at the Royal Academy of Arts

★★★★★
Constance A
Read More

If Not Now, When? at the Saatchi Gallery

★★★★★
Jessica Wall
Read More

Christo and Jeanne-Claude: Boundless at the Saatchi Gallery

★★★★★
Jessica Wall
Read More

Women in Revolt! Art and Activism in the UK 1970-1990 at Tate Britain

★★★★★
Jessica Wall
Read More

The Red Shoes: Beyond the Mirror at BFI Southbank

★★★★★
Jessica Wall
Read More

David Hockney: Drawing from Life at the National Portrait Gallery

★★★★★
Constance A
Read More

Nicole Eisenman: What Happened at Whitechapel Gallery

★★★★★
Joseph Knoeppel
Read More

The Art of Banksy at Regent Street: “A kaleidoscopic showcase of subversion and wit”

★★★★★
Cristiana Ferrauti
Read More

Hiroshi Sugimoto: Time Machine at the Hayward Gallery

★★★★★
Kicki Bostic
Read More
Scroll for more
Tap
  • Popular

  • Latest

  • TOP PICKS

  • Candy Cane Lane
    ★★★★★
    Movie review
  • The House of Bernarda Alba at the National Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • “It’s super important to put attention to childhood, it shapes who children become”: Lila Avilés on Tótem at the Belfast Film Festival
    Culture
  • Willie J Healey at Electric Brixton
    ★★★★★
    Live music
  • Candy Cane Lane
    ★★★★★
    Movie review
  • The House of Bernarda Alba at the National Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • Willie J Healey at Electric Brixton
    ★★★★★
    Live music
  • Eileen
    ★★★★★
    Movie review
  • The Witches at the National Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • The House of Bernarda Alba at the National Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • Willie J Healey at Electric Brixton
    ★★★★★
    Live music
  • The Witches at the National Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • Wish
    ★★★★★
    Movie review
  • A Christmas Carol at the Old Vic
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
The Upcoming
  • Contact us
  • Join the team
  • Subscribe to the mailing list
  • Support us
  • Writing for The Upcoming

Copyright © 2011-2023 FL Media