Keiichi Tanaami: Passage in the Air (1975-1993)

One of the leading pop artists in Japan, Keiichi Tanaami has been at the forefront of psychedelic art since the mid-'60s, when he abandoned a promising design career for more, uh, high-flying pursuits. Working in formats ranging from animation to installations and painting, he continues to exert a dominant influence over the scene even at 79 years of age. This extensive retrospective at Shibuya's Nanzuka is divvied up into two parts, with the first focusing on Tanaami's career between 1977 and 1992, displaying a wide range of paintings, prints, experimental video pieces and installations. Part two takes things in a different direction with exhibits of older work plus furniture created in collaboration with Osaka's Graf in 2004. 'Passage in the Air' makes for a great opportunity to get acquainted with this endlessly creative artist, who's finally earning international recognition as well: after exhibits at the Tate Modern and in Berlin, Tanaami will be heading to New York and Zurich in the near future.