Vision Possible Recent and Early Work Recent Work 1994 - 2004 In my career I have painted about issues from gay marriage, American style confessions on TV talk shows, recent priests' confessions, politics, international affairs, censorship, invasion of privacy, gender, sexual preference, religious discrimination, the Impeachment Trial, Viagra, and AIDS to air and water pollution, toxic shock syndrome, American fast food and culture invading the world (McDonald's Hamburgers Invading Japan, 31 Flavors Invading Japan), international tourism and terrorism, and culture clash and beyond to current series on today's mass media, cloning and internet culture (often as seen through the eyes of an up-to-date Adam and Eve). Weaving news media, reality, fantasy, visionary, imaginary and otherworldly reality with humor, line, form and color, commentary, topicality, and a high level of aesthetics is a challenge. I try to focus on current issues articulated on a metaphorical level rather than recreating a mere copy of reality. Each narrative creates a fantastical aesthetic world where human folly and dilemma are expressed in such a way that the beauty and ugliness of human activity and psyche thrive in a complex pictorial recipe. In order to articulate these varied issues my work has evolved from Japanese-based watercolor paintings to Western-based oil painting. What is consistent about these two obviously different styles is the conceptual aspect of narrative painting. Ironically, to tackle contemporary issues, I reach into the past, basing my early paintings on Japanese Ukiyo-e or wood block prints. My current work has taken another direction, melding western aesthetics, religious and iconic themes from Renaissance that I update as if continuing a cross-epoch conversation. What determines which of the media I work with is the content of the statement I want to address. I use two different visual vocabularies- one for each media- which like any language, encapsulate different outlooks and implications and are applicable in different contexts. This web site is arranged in reverse chronological order so that you will always see my latest work at the top. Please enjoy! Semana Santa / Venus' Security Check 2004 Venus has been stopped at a London airport's security check. Although she showed her ID card (the seashell) to a security guard, she was still treated as suspect. She was strip searched as if she was a suicide bomber. Venus was humiliated and dehumanized. The Tower of London, red boxes (London's public telephone booths), the Tate Modern, the Millennium Bridge and St Patrick's Cathedral are depicted in the background of the bottom triptych. In London, phone boxes' interiors are covered with explicit erotic images and nightclub ads that reflect one aspect of the English cultural landscape. Semana Santa / Venus's Security Check, 2004, Oil on wood with gold leaf frame, 119" x 96-1/2 x 2-3/4" The triptych on top was inspired by priests' sexual abuse issues. I understand that the sexual abuse was more widespread than what the media reported. It extended from child sexual abuse to woman's sexual abuse cases according to investigations stemming from the original complaints. This reminds me of Spanish Inquisition history when churches discovered that there were many priests' sexual abuses. This was causing the church to lose support from their members. Churches at this time had to reform so that they could sustain their financial structure and control. This is exactly what we are seeing repeated today. To me, these problem behaviors could stem from the priests' vow of celibacy. The suppression of sexuality, it seems to me, could lead to the un-controllable explosion of a volcano. It is the nature of sexual desire to find its way out somewhere, somehow. It is only natural that we have sexual desire. Trying to erase it seems to go against the natural flow of the biological human body. Chastity is a tough assignment. Appreciating love, sexual desire and respecting that the nature of the human body is a gift and a celebration is important. Repressing sexuality could easily end up with un-controllable hot lava that can easily flow awry into sexual abuse. Sexuality and ethics are closely related. The priests and women in this triptych are tied together and struggling with sexual ethics. Venus' Serpentine Confession 2003 This narrative takes place in red boxes (phone booths) along the Serpentine (a lake in Hyde Park) in London. Priests confess to women in the red boxes. A woman in the center panel on the top triptych is running away from a priest who had breast Implants. Surgical technology and people's attitude toward high technology is moving incredibly fast nowadays. An astonishing number of people have artificial hearts, cosmetic and body surgeries. This is amazing to me coming from Japanese cultural roots where I always understood that our bodies should be gracefully accepted as fate. The bottom part of this triptych reveals priests and women confessing in Manhattan's Cloisters. A bishop investigates by torturing a woman on an iron rack. Another bishop at a podium apologizes to women and nuns for his church's priests' sexual abuses cases. A priest who is baptizing a baby gives a historical view of the church's sacraments. Venus' Serpentine Confession, 2003, Oil & acrylic on board in gold leaf frame, 38" x 44" x 1-1/2" The backside of this triptych (closed) is a travelogue. Lynda and I visited the Tate Modern, walked along the Tower of London and later visited Madrid and the headquarters of the Spanish Inquisition in Toledo. We also visited Naples, Pompeii and Ireland in 2003. Highlights of each place are depicted in this composition. Semana Santa / Cloning Eve and Geisha 2003 This narrative takes place in Venice, Italy. A live cloned mouse, computer mice and a keyboard in the painting symbolize high tech culture while a priest represents historical and ethical viewpoints in the US. The US Congress recently had a series of intense debates on whether or not cloning a human being is morally or scientifically acceptable. Semana Santa / Cloning Eve and Geisha, 2003, Oil on canvas framed, 89-1/4" x 175-1/16" San Jose Art Museum Collection, San Jose, CA Here, cloned Eves, cloned geisha, and cloned samurai are seen visiting Venice. The samurai are Japanese people who have had facial and body surgeries to become a western man and woman. They abandoned their samurai faces and wanted to be western. They not only had facial surgery, but also changed their entire bodies. I call US culture the "Culture of Unlimited Imagination." Commercial products in this country thrive endlessly. Americans' "Overcoming Nature" belief provides continuous national entertainment and constantly brings out new invention. Americans' drive to become beautiful and for physical fitness by exercise or just by surgically draining fat from their bodies is conceptually unthinkable to a Japanese such as myself. Cloning has brought out ethical, social and cultural issues and also created philosophical and spiritual dilemmas. In an affluent society such as the States, boundless scientific progress continues to invent the unimaginable. Commercial products also overwhelm us, pushing the limits of imagination. Daily dramas expressed by CNN and other media create an ironically warped "Culture of Decadence." Any direction you look in this nation reveals drama. Who would even think in terms of changing one's entire body or sexuality- even changing the length of one's legs or genitalia. Americans seem to be comfortable dealing with their bodies like they would deal with an automobile. If parts of their bodies don't work, replace them with new parts. Americans are incredibly rational. Caught between science, ethics and sexuality, cloning issues have highlighted liberalism vs. conservatism. Since cloning doesn't involve a sexual relationship or conception, it has shaken the west's foundation of morality and spirituality. US Inquisition / The Pope of Thong 2003 Sexuality v. sexual ethics is the theme of this piece. S&M gear is nothing new to religious penitential rituals. They are closely related in terms of their origins. Today the media controls our daily life on many levels. There are ads for work out programs and work out machines, MTV rock bands and Janet Jackson's one side breast exposure, an expensive thin string and small triangle pad that are organized as a thong. A thong is popular among the teens today. A culture of titillation and seduction is what we have in this consumer culture. The Pope in this narrative wears a thong since he is hip. The children here imply priests' sexual abuse issues. A pregnant woman who has been beheaded could imply severed and tormented sexuality. Two dominatrixs are investigating an archbishop on Twin Towers of Babel. Symbolically all of the women in this piece represent humans who are supportive of human sexuality and knowledge. US Inquisition/The Pope of Thong, 2003, oil on canvas, 77-1/2" x 100-1/2" Virtual Inquisition / Woman with Saw 2000 Virtual inquisition / Woman with Saw, 2000, Oil on canvas, 83-1/2" x 61-1/2" Virtual Inquisition / Tower of Babel 2000 Virtual Inquisition / Tower of Babel evolved from a painting about Lt. Kelly Flynn's scandal with a male lover in the US Air Force. As a result of the adulterous affair, Lt. Flynn was kicked out of the Air Force, although her (also married) lover was not. I wanted to depict her as a prisoner of the media but then along came Bill Clinton's Impeachment Trial. The initial painting eventually merged with the new scandal to become this epic piece. Virtual Inquisition / Tower of Babel, 2000, Oil on linen, canvas and paper, 83" x 250" Conceptually and physically, the scale of the painting had to grow in order to cover the expansive trial. I was focusing on how an individual's privacy could be invaded at any time by the government. At the same time, I was concerned that an individual could be sucked into a Media Bacchanalia easily, remembering Princess Diana's situation with the paparazzi. The woman on the far right is the US Air Force Lt. Flynn. She wanted to become the pilot of a US Air Force bomber. The bomber symbolizes her dream that turned out to be a nightmare. She is holding her shot down dream bomber, which is burning in her hands. President Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinski were added to this composition as the impeachment trial progressed. They became prey for the media and seemed to have been in the same place Lt. Flynn found herself. They were caught in the middle of a media circus. The Impeachment Trial became national and international entertainment. We had a chance to watch our leader, the president of the United States, be caught by the Justice Department and tried in front of us. I felt we had a virtual inquisition here in the United States. An inquisition was indeed taking place on millions of television and computer monitors every day. Looking back at the US's historical and cultural roots in order to figure out how this all happened became my personal quest. I needed to look into US religious history to find out where these ethics were coming from. The most visually oriented religion in the western culture turned out to be Catholicism. Their icons are visually fascinating and rich and the myths foreign to me. Soon the Catholic religion surfaced as the main source for the ethical and pictorially vivid materials that I used in the painting. Adam and Eve / Website 2000, 1997 - 2004, Oil on canvas, 83-1/2" x 152-5/8" Cloning Eve / Viagra Falls,1999 - 2004, Oil on linen, 89" x 149-1/2"   Virtual Inquisition / Eve's Cloning Baptism 1999 Scientists successfully cloned a sheep in England. The scientists' next phase would be to explore cloning a human being. Is cloning a human being considered an immaculate conception? Is a cloned Eve going to be sinless because she is born without conception or any form of sexual relationship? In this narrative cloned Eves are put in cages, which could imply they are trapped in the traditional ethics of western culture yet again, despite their new origins. What I'm exploring in this narrative is: Will there be any ethical progress or liberating thoughts for the cloned Eves? Can we expect to see any progress in ethics, belief systems, or understanding sexuality as cloning science evolves with lightening speed? This piece is set at Ayer's Rock (Uluru) in Australia's central desert. The US' high tech computer and email culture invades aboriginal people in the Australian desert. Western ethics come along with high tech culture (there are burning confessional rooms depicted in the distance- Panel 1). This narrative brings out the idea that history repeats itself, and that essentially no significant change ever really takes place in society. Priests' sexual abuse issues dominate the imagery, adding another level of social and cultural dilemma. This painting also pursues aspects of the media's influence. The media as paparazzi pursued Princess Diana. Her cemetery can be seen (Panel 4) in the distance. A crocodile with a dotted aboriginal art pattern walks nearby, desperately looking for water. The person with the rhinoceros mask could represent a high-ranking priest who is carrying out his institution's orders. As he directs, the Eves are being carried in cages to be put on trial under the Inquisition. In the distance is a woman who represents US Air Force Lt. Kelly Flynn. Her haunting body floats in the sky (Panel 1). (See Virtual Inquisition / Tower of Babel for more on her story). Virtual Inquisition / Eve's Cloning Baptism, 1999, Oil on canvas, 60-3/4" x 348" Panel 1 (Detail: From left to right) Panel 2 (Detail) Panel 3 (Detail) Panel 4 (Detail) Night Vision Inquisition 1997 Night Vision Inquisition reflects the history of the Clinton Impeachment Trial and same sex marriage issues. Looking at the US Congress, politicians harped on Monica Lewinski and Bill Clinton's affair during their investigation. Their hypocritical approach derailed the entire investigation, turning it into a media circus while pouring millions of dollars down this scandalous drain. Their vision of ethics to pursue Monica and Bill Clinton's wrong doing was corrupted from beginning to end. Devoid of the essence of real social and political issues, the US Congress became the prey of the media and the center of chaos. Night Vision Inquisition, 1997, 92-3/4" x 168", watercolor on paper The penis-headed investigator in this narrative reminds me of a sumo wrestler from Japanese erotic woodblock prints (shunga). He is the lead investigator. Gay men and lesbian couples are depicted as more sane than those investigators with night vision goggles. A media cameraman with a skeleton face lurks behind the scenes. The US Congress visibly exposed a warped side of investigators' interests and agendas. An intricate web of confession was revealed the day I painted this piece. Virtual Inquisition/Reclining Eve 1997 Virtual Inquisition/Reclining Eve evolved along with Night Vision Inquisition at a time when social, cultural and moral chaos suffocated the US Congress. The media stirred up the dark side of human dilemma, moral struggles, spiritual expectations, justice, politics, sexual desires, and sensual scandalous reality in the White House. Reality mingles with fantasy in my painting. Virtual Inquisition/ Reclining Eve, 1997, watercolor on paper, 92-1/2" x 168" The impeachment Trial became perhaps the most extensive media circus ever in US history. Daily news was replete with false media reports and exaggerations that rocked the national community. The media invaded and attacked private life left and right. There was a fear of wire tapping by a government agency. Along with this, US congressional chaos came the Catholic priests' molestation issues that plagued the globe. Ethics rooted in Catholicism and various sects of Christian beliefs took winding roads to surface in the US Congress during the Impeachment Trial. Pursuing justice became a messy political battle rather than one to establish tranquility in society. The Impeachment Trial investigators turned out to be like king storks in Africa. Picking open dying wildebeests became a mundane event in the US Congress. In the midst of this scandalous social and cultural chaos, Adam and Eve descend from heaven to earth. They immediately get into the computer culture of the US. Adam and Eve are learning and adopting contemporary sexuality through computer programs. I depicted Adam in this narrative adjusting Eve's sexuality. The Garden of mail,1996, Watercolor on paper with construction, 79" x 129" Media Bacchanalia,1995, Watercolor on paper, Four panel screen Glasgow Museum - Gallery of Modern Art Collection, Glasgow, Scotland Confessional Series/ Chameleon Priest,1995, Watercolor on paper, 95-1/2" x 60" Confessional Series / Chameleon Priest 1995 I conceived my Confessional Series in the early 1990's and it evolved throughout the decade. I often find sexual and ethical attitudes in the US to be tormented rather than healthy. Underneath so-called wholesome, healthy, open-minded sexuality, there is an undercurrent of darkness that seems to surface whenever it gets the chance. Sexual and ethical scandals continue to entertain TV audiences.   Adam and Eve / Mousetrap, 1995, Watercolor on paper, appx. 7" x 5" Tacoma Museum of Art Collection, Tacoma, WA                                 Early Work 1973 - 1993 My McDonald's Hamburgers Invading Japan and 31 Flavors Invading Japan Series in the 1970's and AIDS Series in the 1980's reflect my cultural heritage from Japan. The Ukiyo-e or wood block print tradition represents my cultural identity. Geisha and samurai images I use are a way to depict traditional-thinking Japanese people. McDonald's Hamburgers Invading Japan / Geisha and Tattooed Woman, 1975, Watercolor on paper, 14-1/4" x 21-1/2" Private Collection, New York, NY 31 Flavors Invading Japan / French Vanilla IV,1979, Watercolor on paper, 11" x 55" Private Collection, CA 31 Flavors Invading Japan / French Vanilla IV detail. AIDS Series / Geisha in Bath,1988, Watercolor on canvas, 108" x 81" AIDS Series / American Kabuki Oishiiwa,1986, Watercolor on paper, Four panel screen Fine Art Museum of San Francisco Collection, San Francisco, CA After the 1980's financial bubble burst, decades of Japanese affluence took a nosedive. In the early 1990's, Japanese culture declined along with the economy. It was as if the country lost all of her momentum. This became a major impetus for me to shift my focus from Japan to the United States. I realized that Japanese were going back to their rigid traditional molds- such as young girls serving tea at the office- rather than the blossoming I'd seen where young women were able to work freelance jobs to support traveling around the world on vacation. Tree of Life Series / Eve with Eggplants,1993, Watercolor with gold leaf on paper, mounted as a scroll Private Collection, Chicago, IL This was also a time when I marked having lived longer in the United States than in my birth country of Japan, I felt that my departure time from Japanese themes in Ukiyo-e style had arrived. I looked for a new challenge. I shifted my focus from Japan to the United States, towards Europe and the world. This new set of sociopolitical and cultural issues demanded a more painterly and rich textural surface than the transparent watercolor I had been using. I felt my media had to be something more expressive in order to bring out the complexity of volatile national and international issues.                    - Masami Teraoka with Lynda Hess Copyright © Masami Teraoka. All rights reserved. Copyright statement.