HIGHLIGHT

Sadamasa Motonaga (1922–2011) was a significant figure in postwar Japanese art and an early core member of the Gutai Art Association, alongside artists such as Jiro Yoshihara, Kazuo Shiraga, and Saburo Murakami. In contrast to some members who emphasized bodily action and material experimentation, Motonaga developed a visual language characterized by lightness, humor, and a sense of play. His practice established a distinctive connection between abstract form and the visual experiences of popular culture.
The 1970s marked an important period in which Motonaga's artistic language gradually matured, and his works began to display visual qualities that resonate with his picture-book practice. The present work, No, was created during this period. Its composition is structured through vivid, dynamic colors and simplified linear elements, while rhythmic forms generate a subtle tension between abstraction and figuration, revealing the artist's characteristic wit and imaginative sensibility. In subsequent years, Motonaga further adopted acrylic airbrush techniques, layering highly saturated colors and clearly defined geometric forms over soft backgrounds. This approach produced a bright and pure chromatic, resulting in a visual style reminiscent of cartoon imagery, which continuously enriched the expressive range of his artistic language.