Yoshitomo Saito reimagines familiar sculptures created by modern and contemporary artists in his series ART TOYS 'R' Us.

 

“I just giggle quietly in my studio thinking about how to play with these already whimsical artworks…” says Saito. He is interested in exploring the dialog between an artist, his (or her) works of art, and the viewer.  In an effort to deepen his own understanding of these works, Saito plays with context. For instance Saito’s “Slant Step for Ants”(2003) came from the observation on the original “Slant Step”(1966) by William T. Wiley and Bruce Nauman. Saito changed the scale of the original in an effort make the work accessible to different audiences. In this case he imagined the original as so much smaller the “even tiny ants” would be able to appreciate the enigma.

 

Yoshitomo Saito was born in Tokyo, Japan. Saito came to the United States to study American studio glass art at the Penland School of Crafts in North Carolina. At California College of the Arts in Oakland, he studied glass under Marvin Lipofsky and sculpture under Dennis Leon and Linda Fleming. He began using bronze during this period and received his MFA in Sculpture.

 

Yoshitomo Saito has been represented by the prestigious Haines Gallery in San Francisco for more than 30 years. His bronze works are found in numerous important collections including the M.H. de Young Museum.   He now operates his private studio foundry at Ironton Studios in RiNo Art District of Denver.