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The Little Ambassador by Japanese Contemporary Artist, Nara Yoshitomo


Nara Yoshitomo
The Little Ambassador
2000
Acrylic on canvas
198.1 x 132.5 cm
Nara Yoshitomo (b. 1959) 



The Sotheby's Hong Kong Autumn Sales, showcased a total of 11 lots by Nara Yoshitomo, spanning several stages of the artist’s creative journey from 1988 to 2012, as well as multiple media including oil, acrylic, coloured pencil and felt-tip pen on canvas, paper, cardboard, wood ceramic pieces and mixed media sculptures, among others.

Measuring nearly two metres in height, Little Ambassador is the very first work from a precious batch of iconic Ambassador paintings that Nara created in the early 2000s. The monumental little girl scowls, furious at the state of the world and the broken promises of her forbearers. Her dress of pale pastel green is soft and luminous, while the neutral background glows with a dream-like simplicity. Enchanting, endearing and powerfully evocative, this is Nara’s peace-advocating magnum opus.

Nara Yoshitomo, There is No Place Like Home 1995, acrylic on canvas, 81.5 x 162 cm

In lieu of a warm and cheerful ‘home’, There is no place like home portrays three children seated in a coffin-like box, brooding in adorable costumes. The cat costumes are a recurrent theme: Nara once recalled in an interview: ‘When I was a child, I really liked cats. In my neighborhood, I didn’t have a friend my age. When I came home [after school] I was alone... So I always played with cats.’ 

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Photography from Sotheby's Hong Kong.