Emotional reflection on a Tokyo art exhibitfrom @laurenrosekocher

Themes

• Legacy
• Artistic recognition
• Feminism in art
• Spirituality
• Grief
• Commercialization of art

Techniques

• Narrative storytelling
• Text overlay
• Juxtaposition
• Personal anecdote

Trends

• Vulnerable storytelling
• Educational carousel

Post caption

I loved the Hilma af Klint exhibition at the National Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo.  She is now recognized as the first abstract painter in the Western art canon. She painted revelations received directly from the spirit world, and before she died, without having achieved any success to speak of, she wrote in her journal that her audience would find her someday. 100 years later, they did. There’s something about seeing a woman’s mystical work dismissed, only to be re-sold as merch in a museum gift shop that got to me! I keep thinking about the dignity of engaging in meaningful work, and the indignities of having to leave a “legacy.” Especially how it relates to Kaito and the way he left this world… Maybe this will be an essay someday.   #hilmaafklint #japanlife #artinjapan #abstractart #modernart #femalepainters #spiritualart #museumofmodernarttokyo Would you rather leave no legacy, or watch it become perverted?

Text overlays

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  The Tote Bag That Made Me Cry After Seeing Hilma af Klint in Tokyo

• informational · photo_1

  Hilma af Klint was born in 1862 and is now considered the earliest abstract artist in Western art.

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  Tokyo was the first exhibit of her works in Asia, ever.

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  Spirits communicated to her and she painted what they shared: visions of invisible, mystical worlds.

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  I have a Hilma af Klint print in my house, a birthday present from my best friend. I see it every day.

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  And there it was, the real painting, right in front of me

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  During her life, Hilma's work was mostly ignored, and she died poor. But in recent years, there's been a massive response to this female artist from over 100 years ago.

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  Some critics dismiss her work - calling it illustration, not painting. They say it can't compare to Kadinsky.

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  They dismiss her because she planned for her work to be shown in a custom “temple.”

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  But as was written in one of the gift shop books - what is a museum, but a temple to art? Maybe she couldn't imagine her work receiving proper respect in a museum, and she dreamed of a place where people could appreciate it in full?

• informational · photo_10

  As she got old, she begged spiritual and artistic societies to take her artwork, to no avail. In the end she gave them to her nephew, sealed for 20 years, and wrote in her final diary entry, “You have mystery service ahead.”

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  She believed an audience would find her someday, and they did.

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  Then the gift shop. I became emotional, seeing the contrast between the lofty spiritual realm of her art and the cheap reality of tote bags & keychains. This was “success” for a long-neglected female artist, but it felt cheap.

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  I kept thinking about beautiful Hilma on the drive home, how she cared for her sick mother and put her art on hold. I also felt like my life was on hold while my husband Kaito was sick. I also watched him leave this life, without his legacy secured.

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  She believed her audience would find her someday, and they did. I can't stop thinking about it. Save this for a reminder on the dignity of work, and the indignities of legacy.

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  Hi I'm Lauren, I run several businesses in Tokyo and make niche content about Japanese aesthetics and my life here. I don't usually cry in museums..but Hilma got me.