Preview: Kokeshi from Folk Art to Art Toy @ JANM (7.11)

R to L: Amy Sol, Kelly Vivanco, Stella Im Hultberg

Presented by LATDA, Kokeshi from Folk Art to Art Toy opening on July 11th, 2009 @ the Japanese American National Museum, offers a broad survey of a multitude of  Kokeshi – Japanese wood dolls that were traditionally  collected as souvenirs by hot springs visitors.  The large show will feature three sections – the first features over 300 examples of traditional kokeshi from the collection of Itske and Anthony Stern, the second features contemporary original takes on the koekshi from eleven artists working in diverse media, and  the third section entitled Custom Kokeshi 2009 curated by Christina Conway features over 100 international artists interpretations of an identical blank kokeshi  wood form.

Dailydujour had the pleasure of visiting the museum a few weeks ago to get an early look at the varied pieces in the show with the assistance of Maria Kwong (LATDA) and Christina Conway.  Though we were primarily focused on the work done for Custom Kokeshi 2009, the follow-up to Christina’s successful 07 Kokeshi show, what we saw of the other show sections was quite impressive.

Conway selected a varied and talented group of artists (full list on the flier after the jump) based on their ability to bring an interesting interpretation of the blank kokeshi form.  While it goes without saying that Conway invited some of the best and brightest artists in the low-brow and pop surrealist genres, she also invited perhaps lesser-know artists who she had become familiar with over the years.  The result is a very strong collection of work which in our opinion surpasses that of the first show – by no means a trivial task.

Enjoy this preview which features pieces from Amy Sol, Caia Koopman, Kelly Vivanco, Meredith Dittmar,  Mike Rivamonte, N.C. Winters,  Stella Im Hultberg, and Tara McPherson.  Look for more shortly. Finally, be sure to mark July 11th on your carder to catch the opening of this excellent show.

Japanese American National Museum
369 East First Street
Los Angeles California 90012
213.625.0414