The Artist's Eye: Shigeo Anzaï at White Rainbow, Until June 18th
London's White Rainbow is currently showing Index II, the gallery’s second
solo exhibition by Shigeo Anzaï With a thematic focus on Anzaï’s
portraiture, Index II comprises nearly 50 images of celebrated international artists
Anzaï came into contact with during his long career, including Bridget Riley, Gilbert &
George, and Andy Warhol.
This follows Index I (Nov 15 – Jan 16), which focused on
his role as a witness to the landmark exhibitions, events and happenings of the
avant-garde in Japan 1970–76, with particular focus on the 10th Tokyo Biennale,
1970; gaining increasing recognition as a seminal moment in art history.
Index II plots a course from Tokyo, to London, New York and Europe across a period
of nearly thirty years, tracing a personal and idiosyncratic account of influential
artistic movements.
Anzaï travelled widely, and in 1974 went to London, where he met a new generation
of younger British artists such as Bridget Riley and Michael Craig-Martin. In 1978
Anzaï received a fellowship allowing him to live in New York for a year. There, he
photographed performances at The Kitchen, at the time New York’s premiere
experimental and avant-garde arts centre, where he established relationships with
Bill Viola, Laurie Anderson and other emerging artists. He went on to photograph
exhibitions such as documenta in Kassel and the Venice Biennale.
Born in Kanagawa, 1939, Anzaï began his artistic practice as a painter and moved
towards photography in the late 1960s. He was closely involved with the Mono-ha
movement, made up of a generation of artists who created a new form of practice
beyond the conventions of the time. He became intimately familiar with its ideas and
practice, with a conviction that its ephemeral quality must be recorded. This led to a
career documenting artists and their work, with over 3000 works taken both in Japan
and internationally over the last four decades.
White Rainbow
47 Mortimer Street
London W1W 8HJ
Opening hours:
Tuesday – Friday: 12:00 – 18:00, Saturday: 12:00 – 17:00
Contact number: 020 7637 1050
