"Tools of the Trade"

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Koji Takei, "Tools of the Trade"
September 8 - October 10, 2001
Reception for the Artist: Saturday, September 8, 2001 from 4 to 6pm

Robert Berman Gallery, C-2 Projects
Bergamot Station Art Center
2525 Michigan Avenue, C-2, Santa Monica, CA 90404
Phone: (310) 315-9506, Fax: (310) 315-9508
E-mail: berman@artnet.net
Web site: robertbermangallery.com
Gallery Hours: Tuesday through Saturday, 11am to 6pm

Koji Takei, a native of Japan schooled and living in the United States, was formally trained as a commercial photographer and graphic designer. After many years of enjoying a successful career on this path, Takei made the transition towards becoming a fine artist in 1991.

Takei's pieces are minimal in their presentation. They are intricately crafted yet playful assemblages sculpted from the material of our everyday lives: hammers, toothbrushes, chairs and ladders, to name a few. From his 40 Foot Ladder spiraling up the wall towards a vanishing point to an elongated hammer that has a tiny little head entitled Hammer for the Timid, these works hearken to the Japanese tradition of Ikebana (flower arranging): Takei has an fastidious eye for spartan composition and placement. Each piece is infused with the meticulousness of a graphic artist as well as with a minimal aesthetic going back to the traditional arts of Japan while at the same time capturing the free-spirited playfulness of a spontaneous idea that has come to fruition.

What separates Takei’s work from many artists working today is that his work is not a variation on one theme but rather the formation of each piece is dictated by a single, disparate idea. His consistency lays within the idea of turning the mundane items that play a familiar role in our everyday lives on their heads, evoking the conceptual works of Marcel Duchamp. With this in mind the philosophy behind his art is to create the greatest transformation utilizing the most minimal of means. Through these commonplace objects Takei imparts to us his vision of the world that is at once humorous and serious but always thought-provoking.

Please join us at a reception for the artist on Saturday, September 8, 2001 from 4 to 6pm. The exhibition will continue through October 10, 2001. Our gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 11am to 6pm.