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Lot Essay
Produced in 1974, New Views of Mount Fuji Series/La Brea Tar Pits (Lot 460) is one of the most arresting ukiyo-e influenced pieces from Masami Teraoka's early career. When Teraoka moved to the United States in the early 1960's, he often sought to highlight the collision of the Eastern and Western cultures through artworks inspired by 'the Floating World'. Despite the intimate scale of the piece, Teraoka manages to capture two iconic destinations—Mount Fuji in Japan and the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles, United States—in the same pictorial space (Fig. 11).
Works from this series are exemplary of the union between Japan's tasteful aesthetic and artistic disciplines: every compositional frame is a faithful statement of Japan's natural vista, topographical makeup, and history; these artistic elements represent a lifeline to the artist, who hopes that future generations would continue Japan's unique aesthetic legacy. Masami Teraoka nostalgically recalled, "I grew up in a kimono boutique run by my grandparents, and I had the pleasure to see and feel—for myself—the elegant, exquisite patterns on the traditional kimonos. But when Western apparel— such as t-shirts, suits, and Levi's denim jeans—made its way to Japan, it has replaced the kimonos and the tradition they once represented." Several woolly mammoths—the most iconic of the pre-historic animals from the La Brea Tar Pits— stumble toward Mount Fuji, an Eden of the East, alluding to the encroachment of Western influence upon Japanese culture. The invasion of Western culture is worrisome to an extent, as it has displaced many of the cultural elements and conventions endemic to Japan. Teraoka's concern is well founded: the boom in population and economy in Post-War Japan ingratiated American culture with Japanese youth, thus causing a seismic shift in local Japanese lifestyle and popular culture.
Framed with a snapshot-like perspective, the composition doesn't aim to achieve a dimensional effect, nor does it invite the interplay of shadows. The artist applies a flat wash with a generous and sweeping strokes in vivid contrasting colours, calling to mind the deep-rooted influence of flattened world of ukiyo-e (Fig. 12) and of American Pop Art.
Works from this series are exemplary of the union between Japan's tasteful aesthetic and artistic disciplines: every compositional frame is a faithful statement of Japan's natural vista, topographical makeup, and history; these artistic elements represent a lifeline to the artist, who hopes that future generations would continue Japan's unique aesthetic legacy. Masami Teraoka nostalgically recalled, "I grew up in a kimono boutique run by my grandparents, and I had the pleasure to see and feel—for myself—the elegant, exquisite patterns on the traditional kimonos. But when Western apparel— such as t-shirts, suits, and Levi's denim jeans—made its way to Japan, it has replaced the kimonos and the tradition they once represented." Several woolly mammoths—the most iconic of the pre-historic animals from the La Brea Tar Pits— stumble toward Mount Fuji, an Eden of the East, alluding to the encroachment of Western influence upon Japanese culture. The invasion of Western culture is worrisome to an extent, as it has displaced many of the cultural elements and conventions endemic to Japan. Teraoka's concern is well founded: the boom in population and economy in Post-War Japan ingratiated American culture with Japanese youth, thus causing a seismic shift in local Japanese lifestyle and popular culture.
Framed with a snapshot-like perspective, the composition doesn't aim to achieve a dimensional effect, nor does it invite the interplay of shadows. The artist applies a flat wash with a generous and sweeping strokes in vivid contrasting colours, calling to mind the deep-rooted influence of flattened world of ukiyo-e (Fig. 12) and of American Pop Art.