Kitamura Seibo

Kitamura Seibo

Kitamura Seibō ( Japanese 北 村 西望 , originally read Kitamura Nishimo ; born December 16, 1884 in Nagasaki Prefecture ; died March 4, 1987 ) was a Japanese sculptor of the late Meiji , Taishō, and Shōwa periods . He is best known as the creator of the sculpture commemorating the atomic bombing of Nagasaki in Nagasaki.

life and work

Kitamura Seibō was born in Minami-Arima in Minami-Takaki County (南 高 来 郡 南 有 馬 村), now Minamishimabara . In 1903 he enrolled in the sculpture course at the Municipal School of Arts and Crafts (京 都市 美術 工 芸 学校, Kyōto-shi Bijtsutsu Kōgei Gakkō) in Kyōto. In the sculpture course he met Tatehata Taimu (建 畠 大 夢; 1880–1942), with whom he became friends. During his training, he submitted a work to the 11th exhibition in the series "New and Old Art" (新 古 美術 会, Shin-kobijutsu-kai), organized by the “Kyōto Fine Arts Association” (京都 美術 協会, Kyōto Bijutsu Kyōkai). He received a third prize for his work entitled "Serenity" (休憩, Kyūkei). In 1908 a work with the title "Dispute" (奮 闘, Funtō) was accepted for the 2nd Bunten exhibition. That was also the time when he began to teach at the private art school, the "Taiheiyō gakai Kenkyūjo" (太平洋 画 会 研究所). In 1915 his work "Angry Waves" (怒濤, Dotō) received the highest award at the 9th Bunter exhibition.

In 1921 Kitamura became a professor at the "Tōkyō School of Arts" (東京 美術 学校, Tōkyō Bijutsu Gakkō), the forerunner of today's Geidai , and in 1925 he became a member of the Academy of Arts. In the course of the Pacific War , many of his bronzes were melted down, whereupon he set up a committee in 1944 to try to prevent such occurrences. After the end of the Pacific War, Kitamura was commissioned by the city of Nagasaki to create a sculpture in memory of the atomic bombing in 1945, which he completed in 1955. The statue is called "Keepsake of Peace" (平和 記念 像, Heiwa kinen-zō).

Kitamura mainly created strong, male statues. In the later years he dealt with historical or Buddhist figures. These include the statue of Katō Kiyomasa and that of the priest Nichiren . In front of Mitaka station there is a Kitamura sculpture, which shows an Amazon riding a horse with a torch. The sculpture is called "World Peace" (世界 連邦 平和 像, Sekai Rempo Heiwa).

In 1958 he was honored as a " person with special cultural merits " and at the same time with the Order of Culture . After his death at the age of 102, a memorial pavilion was opened at Shimabara Castle .

Remarks

1. ↑ Bunten is the abbreviation for the annual state art exhibition (文 展) for Mombushō bijutsu tenrankai ( 文部省 美術展 覧 会 ) from 1907 to 1918, Teiten ( 帝 展 ) is the abbreviation for follower device (帝国美術展 覧 会 , Teikoku bijutsu-in tenrankai ) between 1919 and 1935. The successor from 1936 to 1944 was again called Bunten, a shin (新) for “new” was added to distinguish it. Since 1946, the exhibition has been called Nitten for ( 日本 美術展 覧 会 , Nihon bijutsu-in tenrankai ) , no longer state-owned .

Weblinks (works)

At the National Museum of Modern Art Tokyo :

• 怒濤 (Sea of ​​Anger), 1915
• 晩 鐘 (evening bells), 1916
• 藤 山 雷太氏 像 (Bust of the businessman Fujiyama Raita, (1863–1938)) 1932

literature

• S. Noma (Ed.): Kitamura Seibō . In: Japan. An Illustrated Encyclopedia. Kodansha, 1993, ISBN 4-06-205938-X , p. 794.
• Tazawa, Yutaka: Kitamura Seibō. In: Biographical Dictionary of Japanese Art. Kodansha International, 1981. ISBN 0-87011-488-3 .
• Laurance P. Roberts: Kitamura Seibō . In: A Dictionary of Japanese Artists. Weatherhill, 1976. ISBN 0-8348-0113-2 .

Japanese name: As is common in Japan, the family name comes before the first name in this article . Thus Kitamura is the family name, Seibō the first name.