Shusaku Arakawa

Renowned for his paintings, drawings, prints, and innovative architectural constructions, Shusaku Arakawa was a founding member of the Japanese avant-garde collective Neo Dadaism Organizers and an early practitioner of the international conceptual art movement of the 1960s. 

Biography of Shusaku Arakawa

Shusaku Arakawa was born in Nagoya and attended Musashino Art University in Tokyo. Moving to New York from Japan in 1961, Arakawa created diagrammatic paintings, drawings, and other conceptual works that used systems of words and signs to explore the mechanics of human perception and knowledge. Over the following decades, he continued to exhibit extensively in museums and galleries across North America, Western Europe, and Japan.

In 1962, Arakawa encountered the American poet Madeline Gins, forming a personal and creative alliance. They jointly expanded Arakawa’s painting practice into a significant series named The Mechanism of Meaning, consisting of 80 canvases that delved into the workings of human consciousness and aimed at "solving the problem of art." 

In the 1990s, Arakawa and Gins formulated a theory of 'procedural architecture' to extend the impact of their philosophical implications on human lives. They focused on architecture as a means to 'learn how not to die,' a concept they termed 'reversible destiny.' They firmly believed that the architectural creations they devised could enhance the personal well-being and longevity of their inhabitants. Arakawa and Gins dedicated the rest of their lives to integrating their ideas into architectural theory and modern building methods.

Their architectural legacy includes notable projects such as the Reversible Destiny Lofts–Mitaka, the Site of Reversible Destiny–Yoro, and a permanent installation at Nagi MOCA, all located in Japan, along with Bioscleave House, a private residence in Long Island, New York. Moreover, they founded several organizations, including the Reversible Destiny Foundation, aimed at advancing their artistic and philosophical endeavors.

Arakawa represented Japan in the XXXV Venice Biennale (1970) and was part of Documenta IV (1968) and Documenta VI (1977). Major retrospectives of his work have been held at the Guggenheim Museum in New York and the National Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo, with extensive exhibitions across North America, Western Europe, and Japan.