Formed in Japan in the late 1940s, theExperimental Workshop’s uniting principle wasthat artistic expression and its results are asimportant to art as scientific experimentationto science. The group included painters,sculptors, poets, composers, photographers,filmmakers, and theatrical producers in afusion of disciplines. Their techniques includeddiverse media with an overarching influencefrom the Russian avant-garde of the early 20thcentury. The Experimental Workshop providesfascinating insight into the development ofabstract art forms in the West. Whilst workingindependently, their material had an affinitywith the avant-garde dance movements andconstructivist art ideals of the West.Also on view is the photography of TakuAramasa. Born in Tokyo, he lived inNortheastern China as a child. After Japan’sdefeat in the Second World War, he remainedin China as a refugee for a further two years.Once back in Japan, he started a career asgraphic designer, but turned to photographyin the late 1960s. In 2000, having completedwhat was effectively a grand tour of foreignlands, Aramasa turned his attention to Japan.
