村山直儀オフィシャルウエブサイト

私たちが村山直儀の作品世界に惹かれるのはなによりもその躍動感に満ちた表現にあろう。数多く積んだ速写の修練を思わせる群馬の疾走図、 想像力と写実力が結ぴついた武者たちの戦いの場面、 ボリショイバレエ団に取材した華腿なるプリマたちの舞。 時に男性的な力強さを、時に優雅な女性美の極致を、と自在に描き切って見せる。 

若き日、ターナーの風景画に魅せられ画家の道を志したという村山直儀。風景画と人物画の違いはあれど一瞬の美をキャンバス上に永遠に取り込みたいという思いはいまなおこの画家の基本をなす。 そしてそれを可能にしているのは卓抜な速写力、即ち瞬間を逃さぬクロッキーの力量である。

日本の洋画壇は明治の草創期に黒田清輝らがフランスの外光派と呼ばれるスタティックでバランスのとれた画法をアカデミーの主流に導入したこともあり、どちらかといえぱ動きのあるドラマティックな絵画は敬遠されてきた。 明治のー時期ロマン派の台頭で歴史に材題を求める動きがあったり、戦中に宮本三郎や藤田嗣治らが表現性の髙い戦争記録画を残しているが、これらは例外的なケースである。 油彩画の本場の西欧では早くから旧約聖書の物語やキリストの殉教と再生の物語に材をとった作品やキリシャ神話に材をとった作品が数多く描かれてきた。 近代になってもジャック・ルイ=ダヴィッドによる 「アルプスを越えるナポレオン」やドラクロワの 「民衆を率いる自由の女神」 のような躍動感に満ちた名作が残されている。 いまでもこれらはルーヴル美術館を肪れる世界中の美術ファンの人気の作品である。

日本ではこう言った ドラマティックな絵画表現は戦前から文展などの中央画壇より少年雑誌のグラビアや挿絵の世界で好まれ (髙畠華宵など)、戦後もそれを受けて漫画・劇画の作家がそれを得意としてきた。近年はサブカルチャーといわれるコミック、アニメ、 ゲームの分野の作家がそれを発展的に受け継ぎ、世界的評価でみるとむしろ旧態依然たる既成画壇を押しのけて日本のメジャーカルチャーにとって代わろうという勢いである。 たとえば 「刀剣乱舞」なるゲームがこれまでの古美術刀剣ファンに限られていた日本の刀剣鑑賞の世界をリフレッシュさせるなどサブカルチャーのもつ潜在力はおそるべしである。

この状況下にあって村山直儀の絵画はいまだジャンル横断的にその注目度を髙めつつある。油彩画の系譜にありながらこれだけの写実力とロマン的な構想力を兼ね備えた作家がいることはサブカルチャーで育ってきた新世代の人々や日本文化に興味を持つ海外のファンにも新鮮な驚きともなろう。コレクターが画壇のヒエラルキーや美術団体での役幟に関係なく自分の眼と心でスパッと作品を評価する時代になると、 彼のような独自の世界もった絵画のアルチザンは強い。

いま一度確認しておこう。

「一瞬の美を永遠に」これが村山直儀の芸術の核心である。   

     (美術ジャーナリスト)

The attractiveness of the art works by MURAYAMA Naoyoshi rests, above all, in their vibrancy. Among such works are those depicting: a herd of galloping horses, behind which could be seen the artist’s long apprenticeship engaged in snapshooting the objects; scenes of fighting samurai, crystallised by his superb ability to paint the details working in harmony with poetic imagination; and splendid figures of the prima ballerinas dancing at Bolshoi Theater. On the one hand MURAYAMA depicts masculine beauty and virility; while on the other hand he renders female charms and elegance with matchless skill.

In his youth MURAYAMA was fascinated by the landscape paintings of J.M.W. Turner, which made him to have the desire to be a painter. Beyond differences between landscape and portrait paintings did he share the same compassion with Turner: i.e. perpetuating ephemeral beauty that comes into existence in this world as if it were a miracle on a canvas. This impulse underlies all of his works and has been the driving force of his creation until today. And it is his virtuosity of sketching that makes a moment last forever.

In the early days of Japan’s western art scene, KURODA Kiyoteru (1866-1924), who was an apprentice of a French painter Raphaël Collin (1850-1916) and later became “the father of modern Japanese western-style painting”, and his followers established a form of painterly Academism and western-style painting educational system around the turn of the twentieth century by giving first priority to French pleinairisme which is characterised by its lucid and static painting style. Since then, there has been a tendency to underestimate paintings with the emphasis on dynamic movement and dramatic depiction.

There were some counter-movements against such directions in the mainstream paintings. For instance, some painters endeavoured to develop a new field by depicting historical scenes with the rise of Romanticism. Also, such painters as MIYAMOTO Saburo (1905-1974) and FUJITA Tsuguharu (aka Leonard Foujita: 1886-1968) were involved in the creation of military art depicting various aspects of warfare with mobile expressivity during World War II. However, these were indeed exceptions.

Whereas, in western Europe which is the home of oil painting, many artists have created paintings with historical and mythic subject matters since early times, seeking them in the stories of the Old Testament, crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, and Greek mythology.

Not a few masterpieces of this genre full of dynamism were made such as ‘Napoleon at the Saint-Bernard Passs’ by Jacques-Louis David and ‘Liberty Leading the People’ by Eugène Delacroix in the modern age as well. Now these paintings are the favorites of numerous art lovers visiting the Louvre from all over the world.

In Japan such painting expression conveying a sense of drama, movement and tension has been preferred since prewar era rather in illustrations in boy’s magazines (pioneered by TAKABATAKE Kasho and others) than in the paintings of the mainstream artists whose works were selected for the “Bunten” exhibition (annual art exhibition sponsored by the Ministry of Education). After the war this approach could be found in the works of comic artists, who developed and diversified it. These days many creators in the fields of subculture such as comic, animation films and video games inherit the achievements of their forerunners and are further advancing them. They are now enjoying international reputation, gaining momentum to supersede old-fashioned established painters and, by so doing, mainstream culture. For example, the popularity of an online game called Token Ranbu (Flurry of Swordplay) has refurbished an appreciation of swords enjoyed only by a small number of antique art collectors and dilettantes until then, which might be considered as one of the aspects of today’s culture where an awesome potential of subculture is prevailing.

Under these circumstances the paintings of MURAYAMA Naoyoshi have been gaining genre-crossing attention of many people. Not only for the younger generation who have been familiar with subculture since their childhood but also for the overseas art lovers who are interested in Japanese culture, it might be a fresh surprise to find the art works of MURAYAMA, who, having been established himself as an oil painter, has both excellent skills in realistic depiction and romantic imagination. In an age when each collector comes to appreciate the value of art works in accordance with his or her own eyes and heart rather than with the artists’ hierarchical status in the art world or their positions occupied in related organisations, creators like MURAYAMA, who is a master of craftmanship as well as a distinguished artist with a world of his own, will surely be promoted strongly.

Again, I will say: the essence of MURAYAMA’s artistic creativity consists in his endless efforts to make the miraculous beauty of the moment last forever.

(art journalist)

トップページ（HOME）に戻る