Page 134 - japanese and korean art Utterberg Collection Christie's March 22 2022

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SUDA KOKUTA (1906-1990)
Untitled
Signed Koku to the lower right corner
Gouache, charcoal and mixed media on paperboard; framed
23Ω x 15Ω in. (59.7 x 39.5 cm.)
$5,000-7,000

One could hardly define Suda Kokuta’s artistic style. This
influential artist started his career as a figurative painter. He was
quite a successful artist then – winning various awards and joined
artist groups. However it was not until 1950s that he started
to create in an abstract manner he was known for nowadays.
During the 1950s, groups of artists shared a common interest
in exerting freedom of expression, separate from the influence
of the antiquated art associations. In 1952 Suda co-founded the
Modern Art Discussion Group (Genbi) which provided a forum
for discussions on art theory and practice amongst its members
who also included Jiro Yoshihara (1905-1972) and Shiryu Morita
(1912-1998); these discussions would later form the foundations of
the Gutai group. Although Suda did not join the group to keep his
practice independent, inevitable attention flew to him domestically
and internationally. In his later career, Suda began to focus on
producing bold calligraphic works featuring Buddhist dictums.
Buddhism spirit was always part of his creative activity. He was
such an pure yet persistent person that a priest once referred to him
as Kyoojin Kokuta, or Madman Kokuta. What on top of canvas
and paper were not only thick layers of materials, but also Kokuta’s
pure heart, passion and spiritual minds. Kokuta Suda’s works are
in numerous museum collections, including Miho Museum, Los
Angeles County Museum of Art and The Metropolitan Museum
of Art.

須田剋太 (1906-1990) 無題