Kitagawa Tamiji
1936
Donated by Kubo Sadajirō
Kitagawa Tamiji (1894–1989) was born in Shizuoka Prefecture. In 1914, he left preparatory school for Waseda University and moved to the United States to study American Art. However, his experience in New York bred a deep distrust of big cities, and he moved to Mexico in 1921. After graduating from the Academy of San Carlos in 1924, he spent a year at Ramos Martinez’ Escuelas de Pintura al Aire Libre (Open Air Schools of Painting). Taking inspiration from the Impressionist practice of plein air (outdoor) painting, the program brought arts education to children, adolescents and people from all walks of life as part of Mexican post-revolutionary social reforms. He was particularly involved with arts education for children, helping to disseminate Mexican folk culture closer to regular people at the grassroots level.
After returning to Japan in 1936, he became known in the Japanese art world for a distinctive painting style inspired by Mexican muralism, in the form of dynamic oil and tempera paintings that evoked the feel of Mexican landscapes. He became a member of the Nika Art Association, and later became a seminal figure for the progressive art education movement in Japan during the post-war years. Pursuing his idea of “people’s art”—in his words, “art by and for the people”—he produced many watercolours and prints on Mexican subjects as well as social issues, and retained a keen interest in folk arts and crafts.