Tomio Koyama Gallery Tokyo - Kyoto | TKG Editions　Ginza - Kyoto

» Concept:

Organised by Tomio Koyama Gallery, The Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation
Supported by Daiwa Securities Group Inc., Tokyo Wonder Site, Mori Art Museum

Related event:

• Marcus Coates : Artist Talk and Performance
• Monday 9 November, 7-8:30pm Roppongi Academy Hills
• Speakers: Marcus Coates and Jonathan Watkins (Director, Ikon Gallery / Chair of Daiwa Foundation Art Prize)
• Organised by The Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation
• Supported by Mori Art Museum, Academy Hills, British Council
• Free Admission / Places can be booked at www.academyhills.com

Tomio Koyama Gallery and The Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation are delighted to announce Marcus Coates' solo exhibition at Tomio Koyama Gallery in Tokyo. This prestigious solo show has been awarded to him as winner of the Daiwa Foundation Art Prize in June this year.

The Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation is a UK-based charity which supports closer links between Britain and Japan. Coates competed against nearly 900 applicants for this unique opportunity.

Jonathan Watkins, Director of Ikon Gallery, Birmingham, was one of the eminent judges. He remarks: 'Coates has emerged as an artist with a distinct and extraordinary vision. He is making work now which is better than ever.'

Professor Marie Conte-Helm, Director General of the Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation, comments: 'This challenging exhibition reflects the spirit behind the Daiwa Foundation Art Prize - to open new doors for British artists in Japan.'

Coates'film, installation and performance art focuses on the relationship between humans and other species. His work has received international acclaim and he has recently shown work in Tate Modern, London. The exhibition will include one of his best known works, Dawn Chorus, in which the human voice accurately mimics birdsong, as well as his most recently commissioned piece, Intelligent Design, filmed in the Galapagos Islands in 2008, it depicts the failed attempt of two mating tortoises.

▼Notes to Editors

Marcus Coates (b.1968, London) graduated in 1990 with a BA (Hons) Degree in Fine Art from Kent Institute of Art and Design, (UK). He also gained a Post Graduate Diploma from the Royal Academy of Art (London, UK) in 1993. Most recently, he has exhibited as part of Altermodern: Tate Triennial, at Tate Britain, London. Coates has exhibited his works in many countries around the world, holding solo shows around Europe and group exhibitions in Scandinavia, Israel and also in Japan. His Japanese shows took place in 2006 and included Grizedale Arts 'Seven Samurai' in Toge-mura for the Echigo Tsumari Art Triennial and Tokyo Ikebukuro International Art Festival. This will be his first solo show in Japan.

The Judging Panel

Jonathan Watkins (Chair)

Director of Ikon Gallery, Birmingham

Mami Kataoka

Chief Curator, Mori Art Museum / International Associate Curator, The Hayward Gallery, London

Tomio Koyama

Owner of Tomio Koyama Gallery

Joanna Pitman

Art Critic for The Times and former Times correspondent in Japan

Edmund de Waal

Artist potter, curator, writer and Professor of Ceramics at the University of Westminster

The Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation is a UK charity, established in 1988 with the generous support of Daiwa Securities Co Ltd. Its purpose is to support closer links between Britain and Japan in all fields of activity, including the visual arts. www.dajf.org.uk

for further information on 'Daiwa Foundation Art Prize':
Tomoko Kawamura, Daiwa Foundation Japan House (London) Program Adviser
email: tomokokawamura.jp@gmail.com