171 Shusaku Arakawa (1936-2010) - Vision in Form – Abstract Geometric Composition – Original Engraving

Shusaku Arakawa (July 6, 1936 – May 18, 2010) was a Japanese artist and architect. He had a personal and artistic partnership with writer and artist Madeline Gins that spanned more than four decades.

Arakawa arrived in New York in 1961 with fourteen dollars in his pocket and a telephone number for Marcel Duchamp, whom he phoned from the airport and with whom he eventually formed a close friendship. He started using diagrams within his paintings as philosophical propositions. Jean-Francois Lyotard said of Arakawa’s work that it “makes us think through the eyes,” and Hans-Georg Gadamer described it as transforming “the usual constancies of orientation into a strange, enticing game—a game of continually thinking out.” Quoting Paul Celan, Gadamer also wrote of the work: “There are songs to sing beyond the human.”

Artist or Maker:

Shusaku Arakawa

Dimensions:

28 cm x 56 cm

Medium:

Engraving

Date:

1977

Condition Report:

This work is in good condition overall. There may be a few minor imperfections or fox or mottled marks to be expected with age. Please review the images carefully for condition details, and feel free to contact us with any questions or for a comprehensive condition report.