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Kunizo Matsumoto

please click image to enlarge

artist: Kunizo Matsumoto

title: 62, 2000

inventory: km-3971

media: marker on paper

size: 10 1/2 x 9 1/2 inches

price: contact gallery

 

 

Kunizo Matsumoto (1962-)

Kunizo Matsumoto was born in Osaka, Japan, in 1962. His family owns a popular Chinese restaurant in the heart of Osaka. His grandfather, his father, and now his brother have all been the chefs. At the age of three, Kunizo started to watch Kabuki plays, taken by his grandparents who were both Kabuki fanatics. Once a week, when the restaurant closed, the old couple took the infant Kunizo to Kabuki. Since then, his passion has been in the theatrical world of Kabuki and other types of theatrical entertainments in Japan. Kunizo Matsumoto discovered his interest in writing around 1985. Having started to copy letters written by a center's staff on notebooks, he developed his own style and subjects.

In 1995, he joined the Atelier Hiko, a small art studio for mentally disabled adults. His writing exploded. He has fanatically copied what he loves: names of theaters, performances, actors, singers, songs, and music instruments. He prefers to write on small pieces of paper, notebooks, and calendars. In these days he writes on paper of postcard size and 'mails' them, hoping that he would get what he desires, such as theater tickets and CDs.

Can we read his handwriting? The anwser is yes and no. His writing is utterly illusive. He elaborates imaginary letters, manipulating parts of existing letters. These unreadable characters, however, stand out with poetical effusions.

As well as writing, he is obsessed with collecting written information. In his room, there are piles of fliers and brochures he has accumulated for years. He won't let anybody touch them.

In our history of calligraphy, both in China and Japan, the great masters of writing are called "Sho Sei" which literally means "writing saints". Is Kunizo Matsumoto a "Sho Sei" or a "Sho Kyo" which literally means a "writing craze"?

written by Yukiko Koide