Shigeki Kitani

Born: Hyogo, 1929. Died: 2009
Period of Membership in GUTAI: 1965-1968

Kitani graduated from Kyoto City University of Art (now Kyoto City University of Arts) in 1952, majoring in painting. In 1956, he participated in the “Gutai Outdoor Art Exhibition”, where he presented “Plates”, a series of 10 x 10 flat plates lined up on the ground. However, his involvement with Gutai at this point was only temporary. In 1965, he exhibited at the 15th Gutai Art Exhibition, joining Gutai the following year and remaining with them until the 20th Gutai Exhibition in 1968. Besides being a painter, he was also active as a poet.
Kitani’s canvases were stuffed with cotton, causing them to protrude forward. These reliefs, which bore a resemblance to stuffed toys and often formed a female torso, were, however, covered with vivid color bands and were difficult to grasp. From here, we can see his intention of using a concrete motif and attempting to render it meaningless.