Art: General

A Dictionary of Twentieth-Century Art The Oxford Dictionary of Art Further reading

Gutai Group

A Dictionary of Twentieth-Century Art | 1999 | | Copyright

Gutai Group (or Gutai Art Association). A group of Japanese avant-garde artists founded at Osaka in 1954; the name means ‘embodiment'. Jiro Yoshihara was the group's leader; he was appreciably older than the other members of the group, and his personal wealth was largely responsible for financing their activities. These were varied, but the group was best known for Performance art. In 1960, for example, it produced a Sky Festival: ‘Large balloons bearing banners by the artists, and some invited foreigners like Lucio Fontana and Alfred Leslie, were released from the roof of a department store in Osaka, recalling a similar piece by Yves Klein done in 1957’ ( Adrian Henri, Environments and Happenings, 1974). The Gutai artists also produced Action Paintings using extremely unconventional techniques. The group held numerous exhibitions and published 14 numbers of its magazine before breaking up following Yoshihara's death in 1972.

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IAN CHILVERS. "Gutai Group." A Dictionary of Twentieth-Century Art. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. 29 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

IAN CHILVERS. "Gutai Group." A Dictionary of Twentieth-Century Art. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. (May 29, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O5-GutaiGroup.html

IAN CHILVERS. "Gutai Group." A Dictionary of Twentieth-Century Art. 1999. Retrieved May 29, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O5-GutaiGroup.html

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Gutai Group

The Oxford Dictionary of Art | 2004 | | Copyright

Gutai Group. A group of Japanese artists founded at Osaka in 1954, led by Jiro Yoshihara. The group was best known for Performance art. In 1960, for example, it produced a Sky Festival: ‘Large balloons bearing banners by the artists, and some invited foreigners…were released from the roof of a department store in Osaka, recalling a similar piece by Yves Klein done in 1957’ (Adrian Henri, Environments and Happenings, 1974). The Gutai artists also produced abstract paintings, mainly in an Abstract Expressionist vein. The group held numerous exhibitions and published fourteen numbers of its magazine before breaking up following Yoshihara's death in 1972.

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

IAN CHILVERS. "Gutai Group." The Oxford Dictionary of Art. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 29 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

IAN CHILVERS. "Gutai Group." The Oxford Dictionary of Art. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 29, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O2-GutaiGroup.html

IAN CHILVERS. "Gutai Group." The Oxford Dictionary of Art. 2004. Retrieved May 29, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O2-GutaiGroup.html

Learn more about citation styles

Free newspaper and magazine articles

	Missing in action.(the art of the Japanese group Gutai) Magazine article from: Artforum International; 5/1/1999
	Atsuko Tanaka: New York University Grey Art Gallery/Paula Cooper Gallery. Magazine article from: Artforum International; 12/1/2004
	Kazuo Shiraga: McCAFFREY FINE ART. Magazine article from: Artforum International; 4/1/2010