Yu-ichi Inoe (1916-1985) is one of the most important calligraphers. 

Inoue became a teacher at the age of 19, and started studying calligraphy under Sokyu Ueda when he was 25. Since then, he continued producing numerous significant works through his career. Especially his experimental "one character writings" possess a general plasticity, and as outstanding masterpieces which lie on the border of calligraphy and painting have received high acclaim both in Japan and overseas. He participated in important international exhibitions such as the São Paulo Art Biennial (the 4th and the 6th), Documenta 2, and Carnegie International 1961. His work received greater acclaim after comparison by the critic Herbert Read with masters such as Jackson Pollock and, after his death, a retrospective exhibition touring 7 domestic art museums was held in 1989, while his work was also included in "Scream Against the Sky: Japanese Art After 1945" which toured from Yokohama Museum of Art to The Guggenheim Museum Soho and The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art in 1994 and 1995. In recent years, his work has also appeared in Sharjah Biennial 11 held this year from March to May, curated by Yuko Hasegawa. His work is in collections at The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo and Kyoto, as well as in museums throughout Japan and overseas. 

This exhibition will feature around 10 works from his "flower" series of the "one character writings". It runs simultaneously with two more exhibitions of Inoe's works: Tomio Koyama Gallery (Kiyosumishirakawa, Tokyo) will present 10 works that were exhibited at Sharjah Biennial 11, and 12 smaller works will be on view at KAMIYA ART (Nihonbashi, Tokyo). 

Tomio Koyama Gallery: www.tomiokoyamagallery.com

KAMIYA ART: www.kamiya-art.com