Summer Feature Exhibition 2024
Wartime: Foujita Tsuguharu in Japan: From everyday life to wartime
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Exhibition Overview
The Karuizawa Ando Museum of Art (43-10 Karuizawa Higashi, Karuizawa-machi, Kitasaku-gun, Nagano Prefecture) will hold a special summer exhibition 2024, "The Age of War: Foujita Tsuguharu in Japan, From Everyday Life to Wartime," from Thursday, July 25, 2024. Foujita Tsuguharu, who became a celebrity in Paris in the 1920s for his "milky skin," was based in Japan from 1933, and from 1938 onwards produced war paintings as a war artist. This exhibition focuses on the 1930s and 1940s when Foujita stayed in Japan, between his time in Paris when he gained fame and his postwar life in France, when he decided never to return to Japan. The exhibition explores the inner world of Foujita, who was gradually drawn into the war as the shadow of war crept in.
In the 1920s, Foujita Tsuguharu rose to fame with his "milky-skinned" nudes. After returning to Japan temporarily in 1929 for a triumphant return exhibition, he made Japan his base of operations from 1933, and produced war paintings as a war artist from 1938 onwards. However, after the war, heartbroken over issues surrounding war responsibility, Foujita left France via New York in 1949, never to return to Japan again.
During the 1930s, when Fujita stayed in Japan for a long time, the footsteps of war gradually approached, but he remained enthusiastic about creating art. He created many murals based on his experiences in France and Latin America, painted people he met in Mexico, and also worked energetically on portraits. He also produced many Japanese paintings during his stay in Japan. In 1934, he joined the Nikakai, showing his intention to be active in Japan. Fujita was also tasked by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and others with introducing Japanese culture to the world, so he traveled all over Japan and painted Japanese landscapes, customs, and traditions. During these days, Fujita left behind many writings about Japan. Meanwhile, until the war began in earnest, Fujita was also energetically introducing France as an "international person" through his works and writings.
When the Sino-Japanese War broke out in 1937, many artists, including Fujita, became war painters and worked on creating works for their home countries. Western motifs disappeared from Fujita's works, and his style changed to a more Japanese one. He then created works focusing on "life behind the lines" and the battlefield. However, in April 1939, Fujita suddenly left Japan with his fifth wife, Kimiyo, and headed for Paris. He remained in France until the worsening war situation in Europe forced him to return home. He finally returned to Japan in May 1940, after which he shaved his head, created several major war paintings, and fulfilled his mission as a war painter.
Foujita said that his reason for going to France was to "play a part in international friendship through art," but the truth of the matter remains unknown. Looking at his diary and notebooks written in 1939, apart from the fact that it was wartime, there was nothing very different about his life in Paris. He produced art every day and actively interacted with local Japanese people. However, he was sensitive to the state of the war and kept detailed records of wartime events. After returning to Japan, Foujita devoted himself to creating war paintings, producing masterpieces such as "Suicide Attack on Attu Island" (1943, oil on canvas, in the collection of the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo).
This exhibition focuses on the period between Foujita's time at the École de Paris, when he gained fame, and his postwar life in France, namely the 1930s and 1940s, when he lived in Japan. The exhibition features works by Foujita that were created during the increasingly intense conflict, as the shadow of war crept into everyday life, as well as invaluable portrait photographs by Domon Ken. Please enjoy the exhibition while thinking about Foujita's feelings at the time.
1. Introducing works that will be on public display for the first time! Three new works will be on public display for the first time at this exhibition!
2. As a bridge to the world: Focus on Japan's Fujita
Foujita stayed in Japan in 1929 and again from 1933 to 1949. During the war, he is known as a war painter who produced masterpieces such as "Battle of the Harha River" (1941, oil on canvas, National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo) and "Suicide Attack on Attu Island" (1943, oil on canvas, National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo), which boosted the morale of the Japanese people. However, before that, he played a role in talking about and painting local landscapes, Japanese traditions, Japanese women, and other topics, and disseminating them to the world. In a letter that Foujita wrote to Picasso in March 1938, he wrote about the good things about Japan, and how it is not a country dominated by militarism. This exhibition will introduce Foujita's life in Japan, where daily life was still peaceful, even as the footsteps of war approached, along with works from the collection and commentary.
3. Special exhibition held at the same time!
"Tsuguharu Foujita: The Work of Books in Japan - France as Seen by Foujita"
Date: July 25th (Thursday) – September 24th (Tuesday), 2024
Fujita was involved in the magazine "Book Works" that introduced Japan in Paris in the 1920s, when Japonism was rekindled, and he then worked on "Book Works" in Japan, focusing on themes such as French customs, trends, and women, until the war began in earnest. In particular, women's magazines that introduced women's achievements and foreign culture welcomed Fujita, who had lived abroad for many years, and commissioned him to create cover illustrations. In this special exhibition, you can see France as seen by Fujita through "Book Works," and enjoy the progressive atmosphere that permeated Japanese society in the 1930s, even as war was fast approaching.
About the Exhibition
In the 1920s, Foujita Tsuguharu rose to fame with his "milky-skinned" nudes. After returning to Japan temporarily in 1929 for a triumphant return exhibition, he made Japan his base of operations from 1933, and produced war paintings as a war artist from 1938 onwards. However, after the war, heartbroken over issues surrounding war responsibility, Foujita left France via New York in 1949, never to return to Japan again.
During the 1930s, when Fujita stayed in Japan for a long time, the footsteps of war gradually approached, but he remained enthusiastic about creating art. He created many murals based on his experiences in France and Latin America, painted people he met in Mexico, and also worked energetically on portraits. He also produced many Japanese paintings during his stay in Japan. In 1934, he joined the Nikakai, showing his intention to be active in Japan. Fujita was also tasked by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and others with introducing Japanese culture to the world, so he traveled all over Japan and painted Japanese landscapes, customs, and traditions. During these days, Fujita left behind many writings about Japan. Meanwhile, until the war began in earnest, Fujita was also energetically introducing France as an "international person" through his works and writings.
When the Sino-Japanese War broke out in 1937, many artists, including Fujita, became war painters and worked on creating works for their home countries. Western motifs disappeared from Fujita's works, and his style changed to a more Japanese one. He then created works focusing on "life behind the lines" and the battlefield. However, in April 1939, Fujita suddenly left Japan with his fifth wife, Kimiyo, and headed for Paris. He remained in France until the worsening war situation in Europe forced him to return home. He finally returned to Japan in May 1940, after which he shaved his head, created several major war paintings, and fulfilled his mission as a war painter.
Foujita said that his reason for going to France was to "play a part in international friendship through art," but the truth of the matter remains unknown. Looking at his diary and notebooks written in 1939, apart from the fact that it was wartime, there was nothing very different about his life in Paris. He produced art every day and actively interacted with local Japanese people. However, he was sensitive to the state of the war and kept detailed records of wartime events. After returning to Japan, Foujita devoted himself to creating war paintings, producing masterpieces such as "Suicide Attack on Attu Island" (1943, oil on canvas, in the collection of the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo).
This exhibition focuses on the period between Foujita's time at the École de Paris, when he gained fame, and his postwar life in France, namely the 1930s and 1940s, when he lived in Japan. The exhibition features works by Foujita that were created during the increasingly intense conflict, as the shadow of war crept into everyday life, as well as invaluable portrait photographs by Domon Ken. Please enjoy the exhibition while thinking about Foujita's feelings at the time.
Highlights
1. Introducing works that will be on public display for the first time! Three new works will be on public display for the first time at this exhibition!
2. As a bridge to the world: Focus on Japan's Fujita
Foujita stayed in Japan in 1929 and again from 1933 to 1949. During the war, he is known as a war painter who produced masterpieces such as "Battle of the Harha River" (1941, oil on canvas, National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo) and "Suicide Attack on Attu Island" (1943, oil on canvas, National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo), which boosted the morale of the Japanese people. However, before that, he played a role in talking about and painting local landscapes, Japanese traditions, Japanese women, and other topics, and disseminating them to the world. In a letter that Foujita wrote to Picasso in March 1938, he wrote about the good things about Japan, and how it is not a country dominated by militarism. This exhibition will introduce Foujita's life in Japan, where daily life was still peaceful, even as the footsteps of war approached, along with works from the collection and commentary.
3. Special exhibition held at the same time!
"Tsuguharu Foujita: The Work of Books in Japan - France as Seen by Foujita"
Date: July 25th (Thursday) – September 24th (Tuesday), 2024
Fujita was involved in the magazine "Book Works" that introduced Japan in Paris in the 1920s, when Japonism was rekindled, and he then worked on "Book Works" in Japan, focusing on themes such as French customs, trends, and women, until the war began in earnest. In particular, women's magazines that introduced women's achievements and foreign culture welcomed Fujita, who had lived abroad for many years, and commissioned him to create cover illustrations. In this special exhibition, you can see France as seen by Fujita through "Book Works," and enjoy the progressive atmosphere that permeated Japanese society in the 1930s, even as war was fast approaching.
Introduction of exhibited works

- First public showing Cat, 1929, ink and silk
- This ink painting was done by Fujita as a celebratory gift when Kuniyuki, the 13th head of the Mito Tokugawa family and a friend of Fujita's since childhood, became a duke in 1929 for completing the compilation of the "Dai Nihonshi." It is believed to have been painted in 1929, when Kuniyuki had achieved success in Paris and was on his triumphant return home. The friendship between the two continued even after he returned to Paris after the war. Please note the gentle brushwork, which conveys Fujita's heartfelt congratulations on Kuniyuki's achievement.

- First public showing "Jiujiang Air Corps Maintenance" 1940, oil on canvas
- This is an oil painting depicting the scene in Jiujiang, a port town on the Yangtze River (China) that had been under the control of the Japanese army since July 26, 1938. In October 1938, Fujita, as a commissioned officer of the Ministry of the Navy, set out for the Battle of Hankou with Takehito Fujishima, Hakutei Ishii, and Kenichi Nakamura, stopping off in Shanghai and Jiujiang. In his book, Fujita wrote about the morning he woke up in Jiujiang, "The sounds of trucks, the sounds of soldiers hammering, the whistles of ships, the noise of unloading cargo, the cries of sparrows, the cries of kites. Jiujiang was bustling from the morning." Please enjoy Fujita's work, which depicts a scene of everyday bustle during wartime, painted in soft yet vivid colors.

- First public showing Children Playing in the Street, 1955, ink and paper
- This work is one of the illustrations included in "Sea Dragon" (1955, Georges Guillot), a book that describes the memories of the French intellectual Jean Cocteau's trip to Japan in May 1936. Cocteau was accompanied on his 11-day stay in Japan by translator Horiguchi Daigaku and Fujita, who was based in Japan at the time. Although the work was created in 1955, it depicts the Japanese landscapes of the 1930s that Fujita and Cocteau saw together.

- "Home Life" (Cover: Tsuguharu Foujita, April 1937 issue, Osaka Mainichi Shimbun/Tokyo Nichi Nichi Shimbun, Karuizawa Ando Museum of Art Collection)
- Concurrent exhibition: "Tsuguharu Foujita: The Work of Books in Japan - France as Seen by Foujita"
Date: July 25th (Thursday) – September 24th (Tuesday), 2024