YOSHITOMO NARA
(born 1959 in Hirosaki, Japan) is a contemporary Japanese Pop artist. He currently lives and works in Tokyo, though his artwork has been exhibited worldwide. Nara received his B.F.A. (1985) and an M.F.A. (1987) from the Aichi Prefectural University of Fine Arts and Music. Between 1988 and 1993, Nara studied at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf, in Germany. Nara has had nearly 40 solo exhibitions since 1984. He is represented in New York City by Marianne Boesky Gallery and in Los Angeles by Blum & Poe.

Nara first came to the fore of the art world during Japan’s Pop art movement in the 1990s. The subject matter of his sculptures and paintings is deceptively simple: most works depict one seemingly innocuous subject (often pastel-hued children and animals drawn with confident, cartoonish lines) with little or no background. But these children, who appear at first to be cute and even vulnerable, sometimes brandish weapons like knives and saws. Their wide eyes often hold accusatory looks that could be sleepy-eyed irritation at being awoken from a nap—or that could be undiluted expressions of hate.

Nara, however, does not see his weapon-wielding subjects as aggressors. "Look at them, they [the weapons] are so small, like toys. Do you think they could fight with those?" he says. "I don’t think so. Rather, I kind of see the children among other, bigger, bad people all around them, who are holding bigger knives…"

Lauded by art critics and hipsters alike, Nara’s bizarrely intriguing works have gained him a cult following around the world.

Yoshitomo Nara, Light my Fire, 2001, acrylic, fabric, wood

Yoshitomo Nara, Upset Kitty, 1997, fiberglass, resin, wood, lacquer, cotton

Yoshitomo Nara, Well, 1999, acrylic on cotton

Yoshitomo Nara, In the White Room, 2003, crayon on paper

Yoshitomo Nara, Round Eyed Pilot, 1997, fiberglass, resin, wood, lacquer, cotton

Yoshitomo Nara, Ready to Scout, 2001, acrylic on cotton