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Islands (Shimatachi)

A work made of japanese basalt.
© 2000 Izumi Masatoshi.

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  • A work made of japanese basalt.

Date:

2000

Artist:

Izumi Masatoshi
Japanese, born 1938

About this artwork

A work in three parts, Islands is made out of Japanese basalt (dorokaburi, or “mud-covered basalt”) quarried in the Tohoku region. Together its pieces weigh about 12,000 pounds. For all of his works, Izumi Masatoshi scouts out the stone he wants to use, sometimes spending many months looking for suitable materials. Here he selected a basalt with an exterior of fossilized mud in tones of yellow, brown, and gold and a blackish-gray interior. He cleaved all three parts of the sculpture from one large stone, which is evident in the way their contours fit together. Though the finished product may still appear to be raw, Izumi amplified the natural character of the stone by meticulously cutting or polishing every surface. Islands is thus a contemporary work that recalls a Japanese tradition of reverence for natural materials.

Generations of the Izumi family were stonemasons in the town of Mure on the island of Shikoku. Izumi Masatoshi began to focus on stonecutting as an artistic medium at an early age. In 1964 he began a decades-long collaboration with Isamu Noguchi, whose stone sculptures he executed until Noguchi’s death in 1988.

Status

On View, Gallery 135

Department

Arts of Asia

Artist

Izumi Masatoshi

Title

Islands (Shimatachi)

Place

Japan (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1995–2005

Medium

Japanese basalt

Dimensions

(A) 99 × 121.8 × 121.8 cm (39 × 48 × 48 in.); (B) 99 × 91.5 × 101.7 cm (39 × 36 × 40 in.); (C) 96.6 × 71 × 114.3 cm (38 × 28 × 45 in.)

Credit Line

Purchased with funds provided by Roger L. Weston and Fred Eychaner

Reference Number

2011.47

Copyright

© 2000 Izumi Masatoshi.

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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