Masayuki Nagare

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Nagare, Masayuki (1923– ). Japanese abstract sculptor, active in the USA as well as in his own country. He was born in Nagasaki, the son of a distinguished statesman, and had a samurai upbringing; his interest in martial arts led him to study with a swordsmith, laying the foundations of the understanding of materials and superb craftsmanship that he later displayed in his sculpture. After briefly attending Ritsumeikan University (founded by his father), he served as a fighter pilot, 1943–5, and in the aftermath of the Second World War he led a wandering life for about a decade, associating with artists, including writers and potters. During this time he produced pottery himself and developed a passion for stone by visiting war-scarred graveyards and re-erecting fallen tombstones. In 1955 he had his first one-man exhibition at the Mimatsu Gallery, Tokyo, dedicating it to the memory of American and Japanese pilots killed in the war. The sculptures he showed here were in metal and wood, but he took up stone carving the following year. From 1958 his work began to attract American collectors visiting Japan (see ROCKEFELLER), and he had his first great success with a 600–ton stone wall entitled Stone Crazy for the Japanese Pavilion at the 1964 New York World's Fair. Its popularity with critics and public alike encouraged him to spend most of the next decade in the USA, where his work included the well-known Cloud Fortress (1969–75) in the plaza outside the World Trade Center, New York, consisting of two gigantic triangular clusters in black granite (destroyed 2001).

Disillusioned with American involvement in Vietnam, Nagare has reaffirmed his identity as an Asian and from 1975 he has worked mainly in Japan, where he has carried out numerous major commissions and is recognized as one of the country's outstanding artists. His studio is on the island of Shikoku, remote from Tokyo, and he has devoted much effort to the cultural revitalization of rural Japan, notably with Nagare Park on Okushiri Island (begun 1980, partly destroyed by earthquake 1993, but subsequently reconstructed). His sculpture is abstract but often evokes the human figure or other forms, such as the sharp edges and subtle curves of samurai sword blades. Most characteristically he works in granite, polished to mirror smoothness; often he contrasts sleek shapes with raw, rough surfaces, and he has also used other materials, including bronze and steel, with a similar feeling for their own special qualities.

Nagare, Masayuki (b Nagasaki, 14 Feb. 1923). Japanese sculptor. He had a samurai upbringing and his interest in martial arts led him to study with a swordsmith, laying the foundations of the understanding of materials and superb craftsmanship that he later displayed in his sculpture. His work is abstract but often evokes the human figure or other forms, such as the sharp edges and subtle curves of samurai sword blades. Most characteristically he works in granite, polished to mirror smoothness; often he contrasts sleek shapes with raw, rough surfaces, and he has also used other materials, including bronze and steel, with a similar feeling for their own special qualities. In the 1960s and 1970s he spent much of his time in the USA, where his work included Cloud Fortress (1969–75) in the plaza outside the World Trade Center, New York, consisting of two gigantic triangular clusters in black granite (it was destroyed as a result of the terrorist attack on 11 September 2001).