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Introduction
Spanning across painting, sculpture, installation and video art, Mr.’s signature neo-pop aesthetic portrays the artist’s personal fantasies within the realm of Otaku subculture in Japan. Celebrated for his cartoonlike representations of children and young adolescents, Mr.’s artwork consistently draws from themes and motifs ranging from manga and anime fandoms, leading many to associate his work with the Superflat movement pioneered by art world superstar, Takashi Murakami. Similar to Murakami’s approach, as showcased in Yume—Breath of the Earth, Mr. depicts his characters in a typical kawaii fashion with large, rounded faces, colourful hair and big, sparkling eyes, elevating popular Japanese subculture into the mainstream realm of fine art - which was not the case within Japanese mass culture when he first set out at the start of his career, indicative of Mr.’s influence that has won admiration around the world.
Paris, Galerie Perrotin, Mr's Melancholy Walk Around the Town, 19 January - 9 March 2019
‘Kawaii’ to ‘Kowai’
“I don’t believe in things being only ‘cute’, I feel I always have to represent both the cute and the scary dimensions with my paintings…I want to express roughness, not just cuteness and light-hearted characters.”
— Mr.Reaching beyond the superficial appearance of Kawaii (cute) culture, Mr.’s compositions express a sense of Kowai (scary, dark). Contrasting the bright cheerfulness of Mr.’s characters is an underlying sense of anxiety and loss, specifically as a result of the chaotic environments within which Mr. stages some of his exhibitions, echoing both Japan’s traumatic past during World War II and the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster. Since 2011, when the catastrophic earthquake along with tsunami attacked Tohoku, Japan, Mr. became haunted by this fatal disaster and felt vulnerable about life’s unpredictability. He started to broaden the dimension of characters in his otaku world by paring his typical cute, bright and optimistic figures with a more gritty and abstract painting style, exploring themes of loss and destruction.
Just as the artist explains with the title of his 2018 exhibition at Perrotin: ‘People misunderstand me and the contents of my paintings. They just think they are nostalgic, cute, and look like Japanese anime. That may be true, but really, I paint daily in order to escape the devil that haunts my soul. The said devil also resides in my blood, and I cannot escape from it no matter how I wish, so I paint in resignation.’i Mr.’s works thus act as a form of escapism from contemporary society and a reflection of modern social anxiety, fear and solitude.
This distinctive contrast of the cuteness and idealism in the artist’s work versus the cluttered and chaotic of reality has become Mr.’s emblematic style and aesthetic, encapsulating his internal paradox in the quest of searching for happiness and peace.
Installation view of Hong Kong, Lehmann Maupin, Floating in the Air in the Vicinity of a Convenience Store, 14 September - 21 October 2017
The Bright-eyed Girl
“I think of them as a kind of a mirror reflecting the world… From one point, I started painting girls’ eyes in a way that they seem to have a reflection of something, and since then, I cannot paint eyes without any reflection. There must be something reflecting in the eyes of the girls I paint.”
— Mr.The ubiquitous motif of a character with over-sized eyes and a large head, whose inspiration is largely drawn from 1980s manga, has since become integral within the oeuvre of many Japanese and international artists alike, such as Yoshitomo Nara, Ayako Rokkaku and Javier Calleja. Compared to his contemporaries, Mr. approaches this motif with a stylised touch that is closer to its anime inspirations with their black outlines. As opposed to Nara’s mischievous protagonists, Calleja’s playfulness or the palpable rhythm of Rokkaku’s dancing girls, Mr.’s compositions stand out with their rich colours and glittering details, adorned with various accessories and hairstyles.
Ayako Rokkaku, Untitled ARP 17-014, 2017
Sold by Phillips Hong Kong in Association with Poly Auction on 7 June 2021 for HK$1,890,000
Javier Calleja, You Me, 2019
Lot 8 – Phillips Hong Kong in Association with Poly Auction, 30 November 2021
Estimate HK$3,000,000 - 4,000,000 / US$ 385,000 - 513,000
Ayako Rokkaku, Untitled ARP 17-014, 2017
Sold by Phillips Hong Kong in Association with Poly Auction on 7 June 2021 for HK$1,890,000
Javier Calleja, You Me, 2019
Lot 8 – Phillips Hong Kong in Association with Poly Auction, 30 November 2021
Estimate HK$3,000,000 - 4,000,000 / US$ 385,000 - 513,000
Provenance
Galerie Perrotin, Hong Kong
Acquired from the above by the present owner
5
Yume—Breath of the Earth
signed and dated 'Mr. 2019' on the underside
acrylic and silkscreen print on canvas
120 x 121.3 cm. (47 1/4 x 47 3/4 in.)
Executed in 2019.
Estimate
HK$1,000,000 - 2,000,000
€113,000-227,000
$128,000-256,000
Sold for HK$4,032,000
Charlotte Raybaud
Head of Evening Sale, 20th Century & Contemporary Art
+852 2318 2026
CharlotteRaybaud@phillips.com
20th Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale in Association with Poly Auction
Hong Kong Auction 30 November 2021
1
Cinga Samson
Ivory V
Estimate HK$250,000 - 350,000
Sold for HK$2,520,000
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2
Salman Toor
East Village Iqbal Bano
Estimate HK$1,800,000 - 2,800,000
Sold for HK$4,536,000
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3
Nina Chanel Abney
Untitled (IXI Black)
Estimate HK$1,500,000 - 2,500,000
Sold for HK$3,024,000
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4
Jamian Juliano-Villani
Clear Cough from Your Schedule
Estimate HK$200,000 - 400,000
Sold for HK$781,200
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5
Mr.
Yume—Breath of the Earth
Estimate HK$1,000,000 - 2,000,000
Sold for HK$4,032,000
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6
Julie Curtiss
Escargot
Estimate HK$400,000 - 600,000
Sold for HK$1,449,000
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7
Javier Calleja
30 works: Untitled
Estimate HK$10,000,000 - 15,000,000
Sold for HK$12,108,000
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8
Javier Calleja
You Me
Estimate HK$3,000,000 - 4,000,000
Sold for HK$7,026,000
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9
Aya Takano
In the Lab (the Birth of Jelly)
Estimate HK$200,000 - 300,000
Sold for HK$441,000
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10
Hernan Bas
Minimalism (cracking the code)
Estimate HK$1,000,000 - 1,500,000
Sold for HK$3,780,000
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11
Joel Mesler
Untitled (Night Out)
Estimate HK$500,000 - 700,000
Sold for HK$1,512,000
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12
Shara Hughes
Magic Island
Estimate HK$1,500,000 - 2,500,000
Sold for HK$4,788,000
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13
Scott Kahn
Cadman Plaza
Estimate HK$1,000,000 - 1,500,000
Sold for HK$7,510,000
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14
Matthew Wong
Nature’s Church
Estimate HK$4,000,000 - 6,000,000
Sold for HK$9,204,000
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15
Matthew Wong
Far Away Eyes
Estimate HK$8,000,000 - 12,000,000
Sold for HK$21,183,000
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16
Gerhard Richter
Kerzenschein (Candle-light)
Estimate HK$55,000,000 - 75,000,000
Sold for HK$101,970,000
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17
This lot is no longer available.
18
Yayoi Kusama
INFINITY-NETS (OPRT)
Estimate HK$15,000,000 - 25,000,000
Sold for HK$22,635,000
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19
Yayoi Kusama
Repetition
Estimate HK$15,000,000 - 20,000,000
Sold for HK$19,005,000
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20
Nicolas Party
Still Life
Estimate HK$6,200,000 - 9,400,000
Sold for HK$17,190,000
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21
David Hockney
Bridlington Violets
Estimate HK$10,000,000 - 15,000,000
Sold for HK$12,350,000
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22
Léonard-Tsuguharu Foujita
Self-Portrait with a Cat
Estimate HK$4,000,000 - 6,000,000
Sold for HK$5,292,000
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23
This lot is no longer available.
24
Sanyu
Paysage Aux Hirondelles
Estimate HK$26,000,000 - 46,000,000
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25
Zao Wou-Ki
Sans titre ("Notre Dame")
Estimate HK$7,500,000 - 10,000,000
Sold for HK$10,051,000
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26
Zao Wou-Ki
Brume d’automne
Estimate HK$4,500,000 - 7,500,000
Sold for HK$4,788,000
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27
Auguste Rodin
Le Baiser, 1ère réduction dite aussi "réduction n°1"
Estimate HK$10,000,000 - 15,000,000
Sold for HK$11,745,000
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28
Zao Wou-Ki
20.3.64.
Estimate HK$20,000,000 - 30,000,000
Sold for HK$22,030,000
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29
This lot is no longer available.
30
Alexander Calder
Two Red Petals in the Air
Estimate HK$16,000,000 - 20,000,000
Sold for HK$20,820,000
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31
Claude Monet
Pavots dans un vase de Chine
Estimate HK$9,500,000 - 15,000,000
Sold for HK$13,560,000
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32
Georges Mathieu
Saxifrage
Estimate HK$2,000,000 - 3,000,000
Sold for HK$2,520,000
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33
This lot is no longer available.
34
Huang Yuxing
Floating Bubbles
Estimate HK$1,800,000 - 2,800,000
Sold for HK$2,772,000
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35
Zhou Chunya
Smell the Flowers
Estimate HK$5,000,000 - 7,000,000
Sold for HK$6,905,000
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36
This lot is no longer available.
37
Liu Ye
Flagship No. 2
Estimate HK$2,000,000 - 3,000,000
Sold for HK$5,922,000
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38
Wang Xingwei
Untitled (Heart-Shaped Dance)
Estimate HK$2,800,000 - 4,800,000
Sold for HK$3,780,000
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39
Liu Ye
Untitled
Estimate HK$3,000,000 - 5,000,000
Sold for HK$3,780,000
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40
Liu Wei
You Like Smoking?
Estimate HK$3,000,000 - 5,000,000
Sold for HK$3,780,000
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41
Izumi Kato
Untitled
Estimate HK$4,500,000 - 7,500,000
Sold for HK$11,745,000
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42
Yoshitomo Nara
Pandora's Box
Estimate HK$7,500,000 - 10,000,000
Sold for HK$13,560,000
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43
George Condo
The Dreamer
Estimate HK$4,600,000 - 6,200,000
Sold for HK$11,140,000
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44
George Condo
Entangled Figures
Estimate HK$6,200,000 - 9,200,000
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45
This lot is no longer available.
46
KAWS
NEW YORK
Estimate HK$4,000,000 - 6,000,000
Sold for HK$5,040,000
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47
KAWS
FINAL DAYS
Estimate HK$6,200,000 - 8,200,000
Sold for HK$8,115,000
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48
Raymond Pettibon
Untitled (Force makes nature...)
Estimate HK$1,500,000 - 2,500,000
Sold for HK$3,906,000
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49
Robert Nava
Angel Shark
Estimate HK$1,200,000 - 1,800,000
Sold for HK$4,410,000
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50
Susumu Kamijo
Marching To The Sun
Estimate HK$450,000 - 650,000
Sold for HK$2,142,000
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51
Jadé Fadojutimi
Fishing For Steps
Estimate HK$1,200,000 - 2,200,000
Sold for HK$4,788,000
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52
Mickalene Thomas
Looking Up from the She Works Hard For the Money Pin-Up series
Estimate HK$1,000,000 - 2,000,000
Sold for HK$3,780,000
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53
Billie Zangewa
Cirque d'hiver
Estimate HK$400,000 - 600,000
Sold for HK$567,000
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54
Godwin Champs Namuyimba
The Connector
Estimate HK$200,000 - 400,000
Sold for HK$1,323,000
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55
Tunji Adeniyi-Jones
Blue Ancestor
Estimate HK$400,000 - 600,000
Sold for HK$1,071,000
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56
Tomoo Gokita
Final Confrontation
Estimate HK$1,200,000 - 2,200,000
Sold for HK$2,520,000
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57
Ewa Juszkiewicz
Appropriation
Estimate HK$400,000 - 600,000
Sold for HK$1,890,000
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58
Lucas Arruda
Untitled from the series Deserto-Modelo
Estimate HK$1,000,000 - 1,500,000
Sold for HK$3,780,000
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