Other semi-figurative forms could be representations of buildings or plant life, a minaret or narwhal’s horn, balustrades or ancient funerary objects, each glistening in hues that evoke the acid swirls of Tang-dynasty three-colour glaze or the almost colourless sheen of Korean celadon. Among these we find the stylized figure of a girl in a frock repeated in several colours, from yellow to blue to mauve, and sometimes shown headless, so that the figure becomes a vessel. One of the highlights of the show comes early on with ceramic works presented on a wavy, lime-green stage. Through it all, she has developed a unique language in which abstraction, figuration and landscape converge and diverge – think Paul Klee executed on a bigger, more vigorous scale, as in a group of vertiginous ‘war’ paintings that depict conflagrations as though seen from great heights across vast expanses of water and space. Possessed of both muscular physicality and a deft touch, Ikemura is a protean artist’s artist, equally comfortable working on canvas, as she is handling ceramics, sculpture, photography or any other medium. The Berlin- and Cologne-based Leiko Ikemura marks a triumphant return to Japan with this large-scale exhibition that will tour to Kunstmuseum Basel. Leiko Ikemura: ‘Our Planet – Earth & Stars’

Courtesy: the artist photograph: Shigeo Muto Leiko Ikemura, Our Planet - Earth & Stars, 2019, installation view, The National Art Center Tokyo. Works at Perrotin Tokyo meanwhile reflect on the deaths in recent years of Calle’s mother, father and cat, and include an album of songs the artist commissioned in memory of her cat Souris. The format neatly inverts conventional relations between image and caption, surface representations and the deeper intents behind them.

Viewers must lift the covers to see the photographs – an almost votive act that is both a violation of the work by the viewer, and a test of endurance imposed on the viewer by the work. Gallery Koyanagi features photographs in handsome wood frames equipped with felt covers embroidered with French texts that may or may not relate to the images behind them. Themes of mortality and remembrance are continued in concurrent solo shows at Calle’s Tokyo galleries. The work takes on added poignancy considering the show takes place in the privately-run Hara Museum, which will be closing down in 2020. Here, fabric panels embroidered with Japanese text alternate between Calle’s recounting of her relationship and testimonies by anonymous contributors who share the most painful events they have ever experienced – many involving the death of a loved one. ‘Count Up’ exorcises the trauma through storytelling. Beginning with a blurry Polaroid snapped at a send-off at Gare du Nord, and ending with a scrawled message stating that her partner has had an accident and won’t be joining her in Delhi, ‘Count Down’ is an inventory of images and artifacts retracing Calle’s 92-day itinerary, from love to heartbreak. Divided between ‘Count Down’ and ‘Count Up’, the exhibition, which is installed exactly as before, hinges upon Calle’s unexpected breakup with her partner. Sophie Calle, ‘Exquisite Pain’, 2018, installation view, The Hara Museum Collection, Tokyo. Courtesy: Sophie Calle, ADAGP Paris and JASPAR Tokyo photograph: Keizo Kiokuīefitting an artist whose works often turn on recursive narrative conceits, this exhibition revisits a solo show Sophie Calle held at the Hara Museum in 1999–2000, which in turn revisited events that occurred when the artist first came to Japan in 1984.

Self declaration form ikea