SHIZUKO YOSHIKAWA
Shizuko Yoshikawa (1934, Ōmuta, Japan-2019, Zurich, Switzerland) is a Japanese-Swiss artist who distinguished herself in the rationalist art movements of Constructivist and Concrete Art, rare for women at the time. She was the first and only female Japanese student at the Ulm School of Design in Germany, a forward-thinking institution co-founded by Max Bill to advance the Bauhaus legacy. Initially pursuing English Language and Literature in Tokyo, Yoshikawa shifted her focus to Architecture and Product Design, earning a Master’s degree from Kyōiku University (now Tsukuba University).
Her design journey took a turn at the World Design Conference in Tokyo, in 1960, where she met Tomás Maldonado, a key figure at the Ulm School. Under Maldonado and others, Yoshikawa delved into scientific principles and system theory, evident in her relief permutations and mathematical approach to composition. Her contributions were significant, notably to Otl Aicher's corporate design for Lufthansa. Despite facing exoticization as a Japanese female student in Ulm, she opted to stay in Zurich post-graduation, joining the studio of her future husband, Josef Müller-Brockmann, a pioneer of the International Typographic Style.
In Zurich, Yoshikawa's artistry flourished. She started creating fine art, producing large-scale environmental sculptures and site-specific works, such as "vier mögliche progressionen" (1972), and explored Concrete Art through galerie 58. Influenced by Zurich's Concrete Art movement and figures like Verena Loewensberg, she started unorthodox paths within post-war "cold art," blending Japanese tradition with constructive ideas. Her works, including acrylic-painted abstract reliefs and "farbschattenreliefs" in polyester and epoxy resin, showcase her innovative use of color, light, and shadow, earning her international acclaim.
Expanding field
signed by the artist
Etching – 2 colours
25,5 x 25,5 cm.
Ed. Nr. 66/70
Ed. of 70 ex. – E.A. : VI
1991
Price upon request at info@katevassgalerie.com