Cooper Hewitt says...
Tadanori Yokoo is widely considered one of the most important Japanese graphic designers to emerge following World War II. Yokoo originally trained as a painter, and began his career as a stage designer for avant-garde theater in Tokyo before turning his attention to graphic design in the mid-1960s. Though his early graphic work reflects the influence of Milton Glaser and Seymour Chwast of Push Pin Studios, throughout his career, Yokoo has synthesized iconic elements from both western and eastern art to create a visual dialogue that uniquely reflects the collective consciousness of Japanese society. Yokoo’s designs mine imagery of pop culture and ephemera to comment on traditional hierarchies of both society and fine art. [1]
Yokoo’s reputation and international acclaim rose significantly after the inclusion of his work in the 1968 exhibition at MoMA “Word and Image: Posters and Typography from the Graphic Design Collection of the Museum of Modern Art, 1879–1967” for which he was also commissioned to create the exhibition’s poster. [2] Four years later, MoMA mounted a monographic exhibition of his work. This was followed by other solo exhibitions at the Museen für Kunst und Gewerbe in Hamburg (1973) and the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam (1974). Today, Yokoo’s work continues to be included in the checklists of major exhibitions around the world.
[1] Christopher Mount, “Wild at Heart: Tadanori Yokoo,” Design Observer, Jul. 21, 2010, accessed Dec. 6, 2018, https://designobserver.com/feature/wild-at-heart-tadanori-yokoo/14588.
[2] The Museum of Modern Art, “Press Release: Word and Image,” Jan. 25, 1968, accessed Dec. 6, 2018, https://www.moma.org/documents/moma_press-release_326549.pdf.
