Ken Matsubara Japanese, 1948

The narrative environmental scenes painted by Ken Matsubara (b. 1948) combine natural pigments and materials on delicate washi paper, constructing immersive and multidimensional atmospheres from classical Buddhist imagery. Matsubara's works have exhibited by the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Art, and he won the museum's top award in 1977. Exhibitions of Matsubara's scenes have traveled throughout Japan, Europe, and the United States. His pieces are included in esteemed collections such as the Minneapolis Institute of Art and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Matsubara was born in 1948 in Kamiimachi, Toyama Prefecture in Japan. 

Solo Exhibitions

1980        ‘Ken ‘80’, Kunugi Gallery (Tokyo)

                  Chigasaki Citizens Cultural Center (Kanagawa)

1982        Athens Gallery (Tokyo)

1984        ‘Chaos’, Kunugi Gallery (Tokyo)

1986        Sairin Gallery (Kanagawa)

1988        Gallery MOVE (Kanagawa)

                  Gallery CenterPoint (Tokyo)

                  "Sounds in the Air" at Sairin Gallery (Kanagawa)

1989        Gallery Moe (Tokyo)

1991        Ceratopia Toki Ceramic Wall Solo Exhibition, Gallery Shiranue (Gifu)

1992        Gallery Shiél (Tochigi)

                  Gallery Quattro Cats (Tochigi)

                  Gallery SICOH (Tokyo)

                  Gallery Freedom Space (Kanagawa)

                  Shinsakuramachi Gallery (Toyama)

1993        Gallery Art Robe (Tokyo)

                  Itamuro tourist hotel Daikokuya (Tochigi)

                  Gallery Hirose (Kagawa)

                  Gallery Shiēl (Tochigi)

                  Shinsakuramachi Gallery (Toyama)

1994        Gallery Kan (Fukushima)

                  Gallery Hiratsuka (Kanagawa)

                  Shinsakuramachi Gallery (Toyama)

                  Gallery SICOH (Tokyo)

1995        Gallery Freedom Space (Kanagawa)

                  Gallery Art Robe (Tokyo)

1996        Kitanihon, Northern Japan Monthly Art at Kitanihon Shinbunsha Gallery

1997        The Special Event at  Shoo Museum of Arts (Okayama) Meiji-no-Yakata (Tochigi)

                  G. WING Gallery (Ishikawa)

                  Milestone . Artworks/ Shinsakuramachi Gallery (Toyama)

1998        Gallery Kan (Fukushima)

                  Sampôji Temple Hanamidō (Kanagawa)

1999        Gallery Shiranui (Gifu)

2000        Salon de Vamhou (Okayama)

                  Hotel Hilton Tokyo (Tokyo)

2001        Gallery Tas Tas (Tochigi)

                  Milestone . Artworks (Toyama)

2002        THE HOUSE VOL. 12 ‘Ken Matsubara Art Exhibition’, Office K2 (Tokyo)

2003        Salon de Vamhou & Art Garden (Okayama)

2005        ‘WABI Exhibition’, Gallery MA (Tochigi)

                  ‘WABI Exhibition’, Milestone Artworks (Toyama)

                  Gallery Tas Tas (Tochigi)

                  Gallery Chikuonki (Tochigi)

2006        ‘Ken Matsubara Technique Mixte,’, Espace Culture Bertin Poirée (Paris)

                  ‘Ken Matsubara Exhibition’, Cologne Gallery TKW20 (Germany)

2007        Gallery Sho (Osaka)

                  ‘Water-Earth’, Milestone Artworks (Toyama)

2008        ‘Earth-Water,’ Gallery SICOH (Tokyo)

                  ‘Shoujyou-Ruten – Metempsychosis,’ Toyama Museum of Modern Art

                  Taikōyama Furusato Gallery (Toyama)

2011        Milestone Artworks (Toyama)

                  Gallery Ueda (Tokyo)

2012        Kakiden Gallery (Tokyo)

                  Gallery Tas Tas (Tochigi)

                  Gallery Chikuonki (Tochigi)

                  Salon de Vamhou / Naramura Gallery (Okayama)

2013        Gallery SICOH (Tokyo)

2014        ‘TAMAYURA’, GALLERY IN THE BLUE (Tochigi)

                  G. WING Gallery (Ishikawa)

2015        Ohno House (Tokyo)

                  Ginza Ippodo Gallery (Tokyo)

2016        Kakiden Gallery (Tokyo)                

                  Ippodo Gallery New York (New York)

                  Salon de Vamhou (Okayama)

                  Gallery NOW (Okayama)

2018        Kakiden Gallery (Tokyo)

2019        Wako Hall (Tokyo)

                  ‘KUKAI: Sun and Moon’ at Ippodo Gallery New York (New York)

2020        Genra Art (Ishikawa)

                  ‘Jitsu Getsu Kukai-zu’ at Ginza Ippodo Gallery (Tokyo)

Group Exhibitions

1973        Dokuritsu Bijyutsu exhibition, Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum (Tokyo)

1977        Dai-ichi Bijyutsu Exhibition, Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum (Tokyo)

1979        Japan and France Modern Art Exhibition, Grand Palais National Museum of Art

                  (Paris), Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, Kyoto City Museum of Art

                 Kanagawa Prefecture Art Exhibition, Kenmin Hall Gallery (Kanagawa)

1987        Grand Prize Exhibition, Ueno Royal Museum (Tokyo)

                  INF International Art Exhibition (Peoples’s Republic of China / Kobe)

                  Tokyo Exhibition, Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum (Tokyo)

1988        Japanese Contemporary Ceramics Exhibition, Tokishi Bunka Plaza (Gifu)

                 Maquette Exhibition, Tokishi Bunka Plaza (Gifu)

1989        Spanish Art Award Exhibition, Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art (Spain)

1990        Leading Artist of the Next Generation, Hakone Open-Air Museum (Kanagawa)

1991        Art of Toyama, Toyama Prefectural Museum of Art and Design (Toyama)

1994        Super Project Ichrio Hosoya and Ken Matsubara Kuroiso Cultural Hall (Tochigi)

1995        Art of Toyama ’95, The Museum of Modern Art, Toyama (Toyama)

1996        Saka-no-Machi Art Festival YATUO (Toyama)

1997        Japan and Korea Art Exchange Exhibition (Seoul)

1998        Performing Arts – Chikako Ogura Concert, Casals Hall (Tokyo)

                  Roadside Station Aoki (Tochigi)

1999        Korea and Japan Painting Exchange Exhibition (Tokyo / Seoul)

                  Open Studio ART WALK ’99 (Tochigi)

                  Performing Arts – Gagaku Evening (Gifu)

                  Saka-no-Machi Art YATUO (Toyama)

2000        Milestone Artworks (Toyama)

                  Asian Art Now, Metropolitan Gallery Las Vegas Art Museum, (Las Vegas)

                  Performing Arts – Terumasa Hino Quartet, Kuroiso Cultural Hall (Tochigi)

2004        Performing Arts / Katengetchi – Flowers Blooming in Moonlight (Toyama)

2007        Ken Matsubara and his Friends, Salon de Vamhou (Okayama)

2009        Schule im Berg, Nasu Niki Club (Tochigi)

2018        ‘Ken Matsubara and Toshiya Shimozawa’, Ginza Ippodo Gallery (Tokyo)

2020        Salon de Vamhou (Okayama)

Awards

1977        Dai-ichi Bijyutsu Award, Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum (Tokyo)

1979        Prefectural Assembly Chairman’s Award at the Kanagawa Prefecture Art

                   Exhibition, Kanagawa Kenmin Hall Gallery (Kanagawa)

1987        Special Award, INF International Art Exhibition (PRC/Kobe)

1988        Ceramic Sculpture Exhibition Award at the Japanese Contemporary

                   Ceramics Maquette Exhibition, Tokishi Bunka Plaza (Gifu)

                  Outstanding performance Award at the Japanese Contemporary Ceramics

                   Exhibition, Tokishi Bunka Plaza (Gifu)

Public Collection

1980        Chigasaki Cultural Center (Kanagawa)

                  Fukugonji Temple (Fukui)

1987        Ueno Royal Museum (Tokyo)

1988        Toki Municipal General Hospital (Gifu)

1990        Sengokuhara Chōanji Temple (Kanagawa)

1991        Tōheki – Ceramic Wall, Ceratopia Toki (Gifu)

                  The Museum of Modern Art, Toyama (Toyama)

1992        Headquarters of the National University Co-op. (Tokyo)

1993        Utsunomiya City Shiroyama District Civic Center (Tochigi)

1994        Ota City Funeral Home (Gunma)

1995        Kasama Inari Jinja, Sanshū-den Gathering Hall (Ibaraki)

                  Toyama City Hall (Toyama)

1996        Aubade Hall (Toyama)

1997        Kuroiso Municipal Office (Tochigi)

1999        Amabiki Sanraku Hôji Temple (Ibaraki)

                  Tokishi Bunka Plaza (Gifu)

                  Satake Memorial Hall, Hiroshima University (Hiroshima)

2001        Tono City Community Center, Aeria Tono (Iwate)

2006        JA Kyosai Makuhari Business Support Inc. (Chiba)

                  Soto sect Ryukokuzan Shogakuji Temple (Ibaraki)

2012        Nasu Res Cross Hospital (Tochigi)

2016        Fujiyama Museum (Yamanashi)

2020        “Gengetsu – Waning Moon”, Philadelphia Museum of Art (Pennsylvania)

2024        Dartmouth College Hood Museum of Art (New Hampshire)

2024        Dallas Museum of Art (Texas)

Corporate Collection

1989        Nippon Life Insurance Company (Chiba)

1992        KDD Golf Country Club (Tochigi)

                  Mitsubishi Corporation, Bangkok branch (Thailand)

                  Art Hotel Osaka Bay Tower (Osaka)

1993        NTT Urban Development Otemachi 1^st Square (Tokyo)

                  JR Hotel Clement (Tokushima)

                  Resort Trust XIV Yamanakako (Shizuoka)

                  Hotel New Otani Makuhari (Chiba)

                  Hotel Agora Regency Osaka Sakai (Osaka)

1994        Itamuro Tourist Hotel Daikokuya (Tochigi)

1995        Okura Akademia Park Hotel (Chiba)

                  Hotel Okura JR Huis Ten Bosch (Nagasaki)

                  Izu Ginsui (Shizuoka)

1996        Hotel Atollemerald Miyakojima (Okinawa)

                  Japanese Restaurant Nada Man Beijing Exhibition (Beijing)

1997        Komatsu MEC Corporation (Tochigi)

                  Nihon Propolis Corporation (Tokyo)

                  ANA Crowne Plaza Hotel (Hokkaido)

                  Karatsu Seaside Hotel (Saga)

                  Okinawa Harborview Hotel (Okinawa)

                  Hotel Granvia Kyoto (Kyoto)

                  Hotel Hamamatsucho (Tokyo)

                  Kobe Laguna Garden Hotel (Kobe)

                  Nihon Sports Academy (Nagasaki)

                  Kaga Mansion (Tokyo)

1998        Grand Nikko Tokyo Daiba (Tokyo)

                  Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts (Singapore)

                 ANA Intercontinental Ishigaki Resort (Okinawa)

                  Asahi Shinkin Bank

                  Yomogino Ryokan (Fukushima)

1999        Hotel Okura Hakata (Fukuoka)

                  Resort Trust XIV Tateshina (Nagano)

                  Hotel Okura Tokyo (Tokyo)

                  Seaside Hotel Asuka (Niigata)

2000        Sun Members Saga (Kyoto)

                  Atami Resorpia (Shizuoka)

                  Fuji Film Health Insurance (Shizuoka)

2001        Resort Trust XIV Naruto (Tokushima)

                  UOKI CO., LTD (Kanagawa)

                  ANA Crowne Plaza Shanghai (Shanghai)

2002        Hotel Marinoa Resort Fukuoka (Fukuoka)

                  Komatsu Ltd. Mo-oka Factory (Tochigi)

2003        LUMINE Ogikubo (Tokyo)

2004        Hotel Villa Fontaine Grand Shiodome (Tokyo)

                  La Tour Shiodome (Tokyo)

2006        JA Kyosai Makuhari Business Support Inc. (Chiba)

                  Noble Court Hirakawacho (Tokyo)

                  Oriental Hills Okinawa (Okinawa)

                  Gran Creer Fujigaoka (Kanagawa)

2007        KPEC (Tochigi)

2008        Village Kyoto (Kyoto)

2009        KPEC (Tochigi)

2010        La Tour Shibuya (Tokyo)

2015        Fairmont Jakarta (Indonesia)

2016        Minaguchiya Gallery (Shizuoka)

2018        Hotel Mystays Premier Sapporo Park (Hokkaido)

                  Hakodate Kokusai Hotel (Hokkaido)

                  KOBELCO Mo-oka Shinko Ryo (Tochigi)

2019        Brillia Ichibancho Entrance Hall (Tokyo)

2020        Fusaki Beach Resort Hotel and Spa Ishigaki