Though he started his artistic journey working in oil paint, Toyokuni Honda had an epiphany as a young man when he saw the ancient, faded paintings in temples in Mongolia and the Gobi Desert. He realized that color is fleeting and temporary; line is everything. At that point he began his lifelong practice of the medium of sumi ink and pigment to explore Asian themes.
Among his greatest achievements were the monumental “Great Nirvana” mural at Zenjo-ji Temple, in Kyoto, Japan, which measures 26x 147 feet, completed in 1999 after two years of preparation and four years of actual work. The mural depicts 44 kannons, or goddesses of mercy, surrounding images of nirvana. In 2001, he began his ongoing USA 50 project, in which he will depict every American state from his own viewpoint using traditional Japanese techniques.
Besides gaining renown in his native Japan, he has also received international attention for his work, having been awarded prizes at exhibitions in Bologna, Italy; Lannion, France; Bratislava, Slovak Republic; and Tsingtao, China.
Beginning in 2002, Mr. Honda launched a series of live sumi-e performances, painting on huge canvases in front of audiences in Japan and the US, sometimes in collaboration with various rhythmic musicians, to reintroduce to viewers the joyful and spiritual world of sumi-e.
edited by
Jenny Yoshida.
：酉爵( しょう) シリーズのラベル
