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Kiichi was born in Tokyo, Japan, December 2, 1931 and died in Rochester Hills, Michigan, June 11, 2001.
He is survived by his daughter Eriko Usui.memorials to:
Betty & Kiichi Usui Endowed Scholarship Fund
c/o Meadowbrook Art Gallery
Oakland University
Rochester Hills. MI 48309tributes ......... biographical
about my recent paintings, by Kiichi Usui
We often hear people say, "I discovered America", when they traveled abroad. I mentioned in the previous home page about my rediscovery of beauty in traditional Japanese culture when revisiting my native land after living in the United State for so many years. I would like to define how this process evolved in my case.
While I was teaching at Oakland University, I realized my lack of knowledge regarding my own cultural heritage. The urge to remedy this was so strong that I enrolled in the University of Michigan to study oriental art history, concentrating in Japanese and Chinese art.
One thing that struck me during my studies was the lack of nudity in the art of both cultures. Indian and other Southeast Asian cultures have a different approach, with some religions depicting human sexuality in their artistic expression. Chinese and Japanese artists, on the other hand, portray the human figure in elaborate costumes, rather than emphasizing the human physique.
Buddhist artists of the Japanese Heian Period ( late 8th -12 th century ) created extraordinary religious paintings and sculptures for their rituals. It was not unusual to glorify and idolize their religious icons with depictions of the human figure. These works conveyed sublime yet overpowering sensuality . Buddha's attendants and other ranking deities are often depicted with splendid garments and jewelry, yet these did not hide the natural form. The technical achievement to show human flesh through translucent clothing is well known.
It took me quite a while to make a connection between my own painting and what I admired in these Buddhist paintings. Though they previously existed in clearly separate hemispheres of my brain, something clicked when I visited Japan after a 23 -year absence. The result is the paintings which are included in this home page.
Eriko Usui
3130 Otter Rd.Troy, MI 48084
phone: (586) 421-1081
email: ...... Ewokko@aol.dot com
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