Biography

Nobuo Sekine was a prominent Japanese sculptor born on September 19, 1942, and he passed away on May 13, 2019. He was a key figure in the Mono-ha art movement, which emerged in Japan in the late 1960s and early 1970s. This movement was characterized by its exploration of natural and industrial materials in their raw, unaltered states. Sekine's work often involved earth, stone, and other elemental materials, which he used to create striking, minimalist sculptures that engaged with the environment around them. Sekine's most famous work, 'Phase—Mother Earth,' involved digging a large hole in the ground and using the excavated earth to form a cylinder of the same dimensions. This piece is considered a seminal work of the Mono-ha movement, symbolizing the interaction between material and space. His contributions to the movement were significant, and he was instrumental in shaping its theoretical framework alongside other artists like Lee Ufan. Sekine's work gained international recognition, and he was invited to exhibit at prestigious venues such as the Venice Biennale. His sculptures are celebrated for their simplicity and their ability to transform the viewer's perception of space and material, making them highly sought after by collectors and museums worldwide.