KENZO OKADA (JAPANESE/AMERICAN, 1902-1982) ABSTRACT LANDSCAPE PAINTING, oil on canvas, untitled, possibly a mountain view, signed lower right. Housed in a molded giltwood frame. Reserve. Circa 1965. 29 1/4" x 24" sight, 36 5/8" x 31 1/4" OA.
Small area of loss (approximately 5/8" x 3/8") and flaking/lifting to paint lower right quadrant. Wear to frame.

Provenance: From a Virginia private collection.
Catalogue Note: Born in Yokohama, Japan to a wealthy family, Kenzo Okada (1902-1982) was drawn to art at an early age, despite his parents' insistence that he pursue a more practical career path. In 1922, he enrolled in the Tokyo School of Fine Arts, where, ironically, he quickly developed a fascination with Western art movements of the era. Consequently, he moved to Paris in 1924 to study with fellow Japanese expatriate, Fujita Tsuguhara (Leonard Fujita), and it was here in France that he developed a style modeled after the Impressionists, a style that gained him a good deal of critical recognition during the first part of his career. Ready for a change and a new perspective in the immediate years after World War II, Okada made his way to New York and landed in the middle of a dynamic art scene. In New York he became friends with other artists such as Mark Rothko and Clifford Styll, both of whom introduced him to Abstract Expressionism. Under the influence of the Expressionist movement, Okada's work turned sharply towards abstraction, though he never completely departed from the figurative approach of his younger years. The result is a unique balance between abstraction and representation, such as is the case in the present lot where the outlines of mountains are visible against harsh rectilinear forms. Okada's work is represented in numerous prestigious institutions throughout the country, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Museum of Modern Art, The Guggenheim Museum, and public and private collections throughout the world.

Small area of loss (approximately 5/8" x 3/8") and flaking/lifting to paint lower right quadrant. Wear to frame.