Few artists in the history of modern art have taken upon themselves the task of exploring the magical potential of hinges as a way to open up the pictorial surface of painting as seriously and extensively as Katsumi Nakai.
Born in 1927 in the town of Hirakata, Japan, Nakai was fuelled by a strong desire to travel, settling eventually in the city of Milan, where he would spend the most prolific decades of his career (between 1964 and 1996). Although he never acquired fluent Italian, Nakai became a notable member of the city’s art scene, particularly identified with the cohort of the vibrant Galleria del Naviglio, alongside artists such as Nobuya Abe, Agostino Bonalumi, Enrico Castellani and Lucio Fontana.
Initially working in expressive abstract style, by the mid 1960s Nakai developed a unique approach to art making that relied on cutting and assembling wooden panels using hinges to create paintings of exceptional complexity. As such, his work provides a unique alternative to the typical tendencies associated with Milan of the 1960s and 70s, merging local Spatialist sensibilities with those of North American Minimalist, Colour Field and Hard-Edge painting, as well as ancient traditions of craft making, European and Asian alike.
The present display is an extension of the exhibition Katsumi Nakai: Unfolding, at Luxembourg + Co., 2 Savile Row, London (on view until 9 December).