Kumi Sugai - '93年9月 (Septembre '93)

A striking print by Kumi Sugai: Septembre ’93. Black-and-red arcs and circles slice through a bold calligraphic/letterform/geometric form, set on a deeply embossed, ribbed Arches sheet. Printed at L’atelier Dutrou (Paris), the relief -perhaps - reads as speed bumps / road lines: an echo of Sugai’s fusion of calligraphy and road-sign graphics in full effect. 🛣️🔴⚫

• Year & Edition: 1993 · Ed. 29/80 (signed “Sugai”, & editioned in pencil).
  
• Medium: Etching / relief on embossed Arches paper; printed by L’atelier Dutrou (Paris); published by Robert et Lydie Dutrou Éditeurs (Paris).
  
• Dimensions: Sheet approx. H: 78.50 cm × W: 57.50 cm.
  
• Condition: Near mint; small pinholes centre top & bottom; spectacularly embossed/ribbed paper.
  
• Notes: A spectacular, large, graphic, & modern interior piece. Catalogue raisonné #377 (Katsuo Hara, Sugaï. Catalogue raisonné de l'œuvre gravé 1955–96, 1996).

About the Artist

Kumi Sugai (1919-1996) crafted a bold, graphic print language fusing Japanese calligraphy, Western letterforms, and modern geometric abstraction. A former Hankyu Railway designer, in the 1960's, alongside his paintings, he developed his printmaking - hard-edge compositions evoking road culture and traffic codes: arrows, chevrons, numerals, and directional symbols - motifs iconic to his work from the mid-1960's onward. He won the Grand Prix at the 1966 Kraków International Print Biennial and was appointed a Chevalier of the Légion d’honneur in 1971; his works are held by the National Museum of Modern Art (Tokyo & Kyoto), the Centre Pompidou, the British Museum, and the Guggenheim. [ ← View All Works by Kumi Sugai]