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Yoshitomo Nara was born in 1959 in Hirosaki, a small town nestled in the Japanese mountains. As the youngest in the family, he grew up relatively alone, immersing himself in music and devouring manga. His teenage years in Tokyo marked the beginning of a journey that would take him far beyond Japan's borders.

European Emancipation

In the early '90s, Yoshitomo Nara made the decision to leave Japan to pursue his art studies at the prestigious Kunstakademie in Düsseldorf, Germany. This European experience profoundly influenced his artistic work. Punk references quickly intertwined with the Japanese aesthetic present in his creations.

Return to Japanese Soil

After his European sojourn, Yoshitomo Nara returned to Japan in 2001 and presented his first solo show at the Yokohama Museum of Art, titled "I DON’T MIND, IF YOU FORGET ME." The exhibited canvases drew inspiration from various sources: portraits of children whose features and expressions evoke masks from traditional Japanese theater. Alongside these classical references, the artist fused the manga universe of his childhood with Western musical influences of the '90s that captivated him.

This inaugural event marked the beginning of Yoshitomo Nara's career, as he later joined the Superflat collective alongside Takashi Murakami and Chiho Aoshima. Sharing a common aesthetic characterized by vibrant colors, patterns, and comic book references, they also aimed to denounce the overconsumption society affecting the youth of their country.

Behind the apparent innocence of Yoshitomo Nara's canvases lies a darker dimension, where the depicted children arm themselves with knives, crucifixes, and flaming torches. The artist expresses his desire to equip these small characters to help them defend against darker and more dangerous forces.