Satoru Abe

Satoru Abe (born 13 June 1926) is a Japanese American sculptor and painter.

Satoru Abe
Saturo Abe in 2016
Born (1926-06-13) June 13, 1926
Moiliili, Hawaii
Websitesatoruabe.com


Biography
Satoru Abe, East and West, welded copper and bronze, 1971, Hawaii State Art Museum
Two Abstract Figures, oil on canvas painting by Satoru Abe, c. 1955, Honolulu Museum of Art

Abe was born in Moʻiliʻili, a district of Honolulu, Hawaii. He attended President William McKinley High School, where he took art lessons from Shirley Ximena Hopper Russell. After graduating from high school he worked for the Dairymen's Association.[1] In 1947 he began taking art lessons from Hon Chew Hee and decided to pursue an art career in New York City.[2] On his way to New York, in 1948, Abe spent a summer at the California School for Fine Arts. When he reached New York Abe attended the Art Students League of New York where he studied with Yasuo Kuniyoshi, George Grosz, Louis Bouche and Jon Corbino, N.A. (1905-1964). From 1948 to 1959, Abe traveled to New York regularly.[3] He married Ruth, a fellow student from Wahiawa, and they returned to Hawaii in 1950 with their daughter Gail.

In Hawaii Abe met local artist Isami Doi, who would become a close friend and mentor.[3] Although Abe began as a painter, he learned welding from Bumpei Akaji in 1951, and the two artists began a series of copper work experiments.[4] During these few years in Hawaii, Abe also formed the Metcalf Chateau with Bumpei Akaji, Edmund Chung, Tetsuo Ochikubo, Jerry T. Okimoto, James Park, and Tadashi Sato.[5] Their first group exhibition was in 1954.[1]

In 1956, Abe returned to New York and found a creative home at the SculptureCenter, where his work attracted the attention of gallery owners and others. In 1963, Abe was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship. Abe returned to Hawai'i in 1970, and in the same year was offered a National Endowment for the Arts Artist in Resident grant.[6]

Beliefs

Abe believes in reincarnation and this has influenced his work.[7][8]

Works

Abe is best known for his sculptures of abstracted natural forms, many of which resemble trees, such as East and West in the collection of the Hawaii State Art Museum. He also painted. Two Abstract Figures in the collection of the Honolulu Museum of Art typifies this aspect of his work. The Honolulu Museum of Art and the Hawaii State Art Museum are among the public collections that hold Abe's works.[9] His sculptures in public places include:

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References
  • Abe, Satoru, Sketches 1956-1966 in Bamboo Ridge: Journal of Hawai'i Literature and Arts, Fall 1991, 7-12.
  • Clarke, Joan and Diane Dods, Artists/Hawaii, Honolulu, University of Hawaii Press, 1996, 2-7.
  • Contemporary Museum, Honolulu, Satoru Abe, A Retrospective 1948-1998, Honolulu, The Contemporary Museum, Honolulu, 1998.
  • Department of Education, State of Hawaii, Artists of Hawaii, Honolulu, Department of Education, State of Hawaii, 1985, pp. 31–38.
  • Doi, Isami, Excerpts from "Letters to Satoru Abe, 1952-1965" in Bamboo Ridge: Journal of Hawai'i Literature and Arts, Spring 1998, 57-64.
  • Haar, Francis and Neogy, Prithwish, Artists of Hawaii: Nineteen Painters and Sculptors, University of Hawaii Press, 1974, 19-25.
  • Hartwell, Patricia L. (editor), Retrospective 1967-1987, Hawaii State Foundation on Culture and the Arts, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1987, p. 115
  • Honolulu Museum of Art, Spalding House Self-guided Tour, Sculpture Garden, 2014, pp. 12 & 15
  • International Art Society of Hawai'i, Kuilima Kākou, Hawai'i-Japan Joint Exhibition, Honolulu, International Art Society of Hawai'i, 2004, p. 7
  • Morse, Marcia, Legacy: Facets of Island Modernism, Honolulu, Honolulu Academy of Arts, 2001, ISBN 978-0-937426-48-7, pp. 14, 28-33
  • Morse, Marcia (ed.), Honolulu Printmakers, Honolulu, Honolulu Academy of Arts, 2003, p. 80, ISBN 0-937426-58-X
  • Morse, Marcia and Allison Wong, 10 Years: The Contemporary Museum at First Hawaiian Center, The Contemporary Museum, Honolulu, 2006, ISBN 1888254076, p. 10
  • Radford, Georgia and Warren Radford, Sculpture in the Sun, Hawaii's Art for Open Spaces, University of Hawaii Press, 1978, 91.
  • Wong, Allison, The Contemporary Museum at First Hawaiian Center, The Contemporary Museum, Honolulu HI, 2006, p. 10
  • Yoshihara, Lisa A., Collective Visions, 1967-1997, Hawaii State Foundation on Culture and the Arts, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1997, 17.

Footnotes
  1. Fournier, Rasa (March 13, 2013). "Satoru Abe: Godfather of Honolulu's Art Scene - MidWeek". www.midweek.com. Retrieved 2018-10-09.
  2. Kam, Nadine (August 7, 2005). "After a lifetime creating art, Abe talks about his death". archives.starbulletin.com. Retrieved 2018-10-09.
  3. Papanikolas, Theresa and Stephen Salel, Stephen, Abstract Expressionism, Looking East from the Far West, Honolulu Museum of Art, 2017, ISBN 9780937426920, p. 19
  4. Morse, Marcia, Legacy: Facets of Island Modernism, Honolulu, Honolulu Academy of Arts, 2001, ISBN 0937426482, p. 16
  5. Matsumoto, Lacy, "Hawaii artist honors late friend with exhibition - Satoru Abe to show his work alongside pieces by Jerry Okimoto at Nu'uanu Gallery", Honolulu Advertiser, July 28, 2008, D1
  6. "Hawai'i State Foundation on Culture and the Arts | Sculpture Garden: Works of Art". sfca.hawaii.gov. Retrieved 2018-10-09.
  7. Yoshihara, Lisa (1997). Collective Visions 1967-1997. Honolulu, Hawaii: State Foundation on Culture and the Arts. p. 17.
  8. Munson, Gloria (1992). Art in Public Places: Hawaii State Foundation on Culture and the Arts and its Cultural Significance. Honolulu, Hawaii: University of Hawaii. p. 135.
  9. Honolulu Museum of Art, Spalding House Self-guided Tour, Sculpture Garden, 2014, PP. 12 & 15
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