TOKYO 1955-1970: A New Avant-Garde, edited by Doryun Chong. The Museum of Modern Art, 2012, 216 pp., $55 (hardcover)
Like Britain, Japan is subject to the polarizing forces of the orthodox and radical, the two balancing the flabby middle.
The images of a mutantlike head and amputated torso featured on the front and back covers of this book, suggest identities that have altered their form for the worse. In another scene, an etching by Chimei Hamada, a headless corpse lies naked and pregnant on a battlefield, a stick jammed upright into its genitalia. Such brutal images reflect the postwar sense of deformity and violation experienced by artists resident in a still mutilated city.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.