Renowned Japanese-Brazilian artist Tomie Ohtake dies at 101

Japanese-Brazilian artist Tomie Ohtake died last Thursday, January 12, at the age of 101, an anniversary she had celebrated in November 2014 with a special exhibition at Nara Roesler Gallery. The web page of the Tomie Ohtake Institute said: "The Tomie Ohtake Institute wishes to share its depeest sadness for the death of its beloved patron, today, February 12". Ohtake´s wake was held on February 13, at the Intitute. Famous for her large-format paintings and sculptures, Ohtake is considered one of Brazil´s most significant artists. She was an early adopter of abstraction, through her explorations of color and geometry. Ohtake´s pictorial language also engaged with large-scale sculpture, and her curves and arabesques became icons of the urban landscape in Sao Paulo and other Brazilian cities. In a press release, the Culture Secretary of the state of Sao Paulo said, "We have lost one of the most important names in abstract art in the country and the world (…) Tomie wasa n artist who beautifully brought together cultures, colors, and geometry, mixing the red of Japan with the yellow of her adoptive country". Born in Kyoto in 1913, Ohtake arrived in Brazil in 1936 to visit a relative. In the chaos preceding WWII, she decided to remain in Sao Paulo, where she got married and had children. Ohtake worked through the end of her life, visiting her studio (located in the house of her son Ruy Ohtake) up to three times a week to produce art. In a statement to the Folha de Sao Paulonewspaper in 2013, she said that "I never thought I´s be alive at 100, but such a age comes without you feeling anything (…) All I know is that I love to work and that I am happy when I am painting".

On the occasion of the exhibition Pintura e Pureza, works by Brazilian-Japanese artist Tomie Ohtake at Nara Roesler gallery, Agnadio Farias, visual arts curator at the Tomie Ohtake Institute talks about the show and Ohtake's work. Click here to see the video