Once Upon a Time
Artist
Ibe Kyōko
(Japanese, born 1941)
Date2017
MediumRecycled ganpi paper, ink, and minerals
Dimensions.1: 64 1/2 × 142 1/4 × 11/16 inches (163.83 × 361.32 × 1.75 cm)
.2: 64 1/2 × 142 1/4 × 11/16 inches (163.83 × 361.32 × 1.75 cm)
.2: 64 1/2 × 142 1/4 × 11/16 inches (163.83 × 361.32 × 1.75 cm)
Credit LinePurchase: the Asian Art Acquisition Fund in memory of Laurence Sickman, Oriental Deaccession Fund, and Japanese Art Deaccession Fund
Object number2018.34.1.1,2
InscribedSeveral words appear in the composition: "Moon," "sky," "water," and "light."
On View
Not on viewCollections
DescriptionA pair of screens depicting an abstract landscape that resembles nature such as a distant mountain range, fleeting clouds, and river. The words like "water," "moon," and "sky," float within the scenery.Gallery LabelOnce Upon a Time is contemporary artist Ibe Kyōko’s ode to the beautiful, but changing, relationship between humans and nature. She takes inspiration from classical Chinese and Japanese landscape painting, in which human activities are depicted as small but inherently in harmony with nature. To represent figures in this abstract landscape, the artist incorporated fragments from old manuscripts. Words such as “water,” “moon,” and “light” are integrated into this dynamic, yet meditative, landscape, suggesting a reverence for nature associated with the past.
With Erik Thomsen, New York , by April 2018;
Purchased from Erik Thomsen by The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 2018.Copyright© Ibe Kyōko
Information about a particular artwork or image, including provenance information,
is based upon historic information and may not be currently accurate or complete.
Research on artwork and images is an ongoing process, and the information about a
particular artwork or image may not reflect the most current information available to the Museum.
If you notice a mistake or have additional information about a particular artwork or image,
please e-mail provenance@nelson-atkins.org.
