$425
Still Life with Stringless Cello
YOKOI, Tomoe
Color mezzotint on wove paper. Edition of 150. Signed and numbered in pencil.Very faint discoloration in the margins; unobtrusive.
Tomoe YOKOI
Tomoe Yokoi was born in Nagoya, Japan in 1942 and it today known and admired for her masterful mezzotints. She began her artistic training at Tokyo's Bunka Gakuen vocational school, which became a Women's College in 1964, the year she graduated. It is one of Japan's pioneering institutions for women's education in the arts and it today named the Bunka Gakuen University. While studying there, Yokoi honed her skills in traditional Western artistic techniques, focusing on still-lifes and landscapes.
In 1964, Yokoi moved to Paris to study intaglio printmaking under the guidance of Stanley William Hayter at the famed Atelier 17. Many artists from Asian and American countries were drawn to the collaborative studio at that time. It was during this period that she perfected the mezzotint process. Her work began to incorporate more complex imagery and subtle color nuances, in which dark backgrounds dominate.
Yokoi relocated to New York City in 1971, where she introduced her art to a broader audience. Her mezzotints, which are still lifes in most instances, feature realistic objects isolated against dark backgrounds, blending Japanese reverence for nature with Western still-life traditions.
It seems Tomoe Yokoi ceased to make prints at some point in the past 20 or 30 years. It is unclear where she lives today, and no new work seems to have been shown by any gallery in decades. It is also unclear whether she is still alive, or what may have put a stop to her artistic career. Any further biographical information about the artist would be welcome.
$425
Still Life with Basket of Strawberries
YOKOI, Tomoe
Color mezzotint on wove paper. "Hors Commerce" proof, aside from an edition of 100.Signed and annotated in pencil. Very faint discoloration in the ...
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