New Encounters, a Journey of the Heart, and... The Folon Exhibition at Abeno Harukas Art Museum
It is pouring rain in Osaka.
I haven't stepped outside once. Haha
Today, I'm writing about the outing I mentioned in this article last weekend.
I was hesitant.
I didn't know much about him, but I was very curious after learning that he became a painter because he was inspired by René Magritte, one of my favorite artists, and I wondered if I should go...
Since I had heard before that you might go, I thought you might write an article about it, so I was waiting a little bit... and then this article was updated.
This was no time to hesitate; I had to go, right now!
I felt something pushing me to do so.
And so, I went to the Folon exhibition even though I had a foot injury, and I am truly glad I went, from the bottom of my heart.
"Let's go on a journey, with Folon."
There are many gentle paintings with calm, warm colors, and although the touch and atmosphere of the paintings are different at first glance,
I can clearly feel Magritte there.
I can vividly sense that he was inspired and influenced by him.
As I looked at each piece, my heart was instantly captured by Folon's paintings.
And, just as Awosome-san wrote, I too set off on an "imaginary journey" to re-examine my life.
Awosome-san's report is so wonderful that I want everyone to read it, so I won't be writing anything that could be called a report this time. Haha
I'm thinking of writing an article focusing on things that Awosome-san didn't write about, some facts about Folon, and photos that weren't posted.
When I was looking up a little bit about Folon before going to see the exhibition, I came across this.
"J-M. Folon—The Artist Who Captivated Jobs"
The artist who captivated Jobs?
When I read it, it said:
In 1984, Jobs staked his entire reputation on the release of the original Macintosh (Mac), which can be called the prototype of today's personal computers, and it is said that Jobs discovered Folon during the development process. He fell in love with his style, and according to one theory, he paid $30,000 in advance to commission the creation of the Mac logo. Moreover, it seems he even promised to pay a royalty of $1 for every Mac sold if the design was adopted.
I see, Jobs was captivated by Folon's paintings and entrusted him with the image (logo and characters) of the original Macintosh.
At this Harukas Folon exhibition, three of the works commissioned by Jobs were on display.
Here they are.
A character with a rainbow-colored apple saying hello from a head that has taken off its hat, and a character labeled MACMAN that gives the impression of having had a wonderful idea flash through its head—what is this, colorful like color spray?
Since I felt, "This must be the moment a wonderful idea flashed!" when I saw this painting, isn't it a perfect fit for the image?
Also, in 1998, when Jobs, who had been kicked out of Apple, returned to the company and released his first hit, the iMac, Ken Segall, who named the iMac, testified that Jobs wanted to call this product "MAC MAN" at the time of its development.
Judging by this episode, Jobs must have really liked MACMAN as well.
Seeing the works displayed at this Folon exhibition,
there were so many that I thought, 'Oh, how lovely!' and fell in love with,
and many paintings I wanted to give to friends, so I bought a mountain,
yes, a mountain of postcards, haha.
Honestly, there are so many I can't choose them all,
but I will try to narrow them down as much as possible,
focusing on the ones I liked, especially those that Awosome-san didn't post.
Since Awosome-san's article had a little over 20, I think,
I hope to narrow mine down to within 20 as well, haha.
In this painting, there are many of them, staring intently at me.
The eyes speak as much as the mouth, they say...?
The painting behind it depicts the wind-up key like a tree,
a work titled 'Forest'.
These pale colors and simple lines are beautiful.
and I suppose we choose one by one each day.
every question and every answer was lovely.
When asked about the current state of my heart,
I hope I can share my words or something here on note.
but I have actually had an experience like this painting,
and I couldn't help but feel breathless, thinking, 'Oh...'
While there are many works with impressive blue tones,
the gradation from deep green to dawn-like colors
is somehow beautiful and leaves a lasting impression.
or the month before, this work left an impression on me.
Each circle has an alphabet letter written in it,
like a typewriter,
and the gradation from deep blue to red and black
is a piece that is indescribably impressive.
where the hole part is made of aluminum and reflects.
When I saw this work, I felt it connected to a certain piece
that was displayed near the entrance.
This deep, deep blue gradation,
where the other side of the mountain? or hill? is slightly brighter,
giving the impression of dawn being near,
links to the 'Hole in the Sky' mentioned earlier.
which seems to link to the earlier 'I am writing a letter to you from a distant country'.
The sight of people sitting inside, each typing away
to write letters, is adorable and truly wonderful.
and I looked at it thinking I wanted to do this to my room's walls.
there are some sent when he visited Japan.
Some are covered in many stamps depicting beautiful Japanese landscapes,
so incredibly tasteful that I wanted to copy them, haha.
Where can I find a 'sun' rubber stamp...! Haha.
If you have stamps of the sun, moon, or flowers,
you can create art just like this.
I can only sense great taste in how the stamps are applied.
How many are there...
It was 19! I managed to stay within my goal! Haha.
Though, having said that, it is still a lot.
Oh, one last thing.
At the cafe on the floor above,
there is a collaboration cafe latte.
If you show your museum ticket,you get 50 yen off!
has a large 'O', and the 'O' is an eye, while the 'L' is a nose, forming a face design.
It's even easier to tell when there's a hat.
The Folon Exhibition currently being held at the Abeno Harukas Art Museum
runs until June 22nd,so there is still time.
Please, please! Please go!
Abeno Harukas Art Museum (Abeno Harukas 16th Floor)
April 5, 2025 (Sat) → June 22 (Sun)
Closed: April 7 (Mon), May 12 (Mon)
Hours: Tue-Fri 10:00-20:00,
Mon, Sat, Sun, Holidays 10:00-18:00
*Last admission 30 minutes before closing
Admission: General 1,900 (1,700) yen,
University/High School Students 1,500 (1,300) yen, Elementary/Middle School Students 500 (300) yen
I'll end it here for now.
Thank you for your hard work today.
Thank you for reading until the end.
Please come back if you feel like it.
いいなと思ったら応援しよう！
応援していただけると嬉しいです。