Biography
Avito Koyama is a Japanese printmaker whose screenprints transform documentary landscape photography into layered, meditative abstractions. Born in 1951 in Okayama Prefecture, he studied at the Sokei Academy of Fine Arts in Tokyo before developing a highly individual approach to printmaking.
Koyama's subject is the dry river landscape near his home in Saitama Prefecture, a terrain he photographs himself as the starting point for each work. After capturing an image, he mentally deconstructs it into its component colors, then produces his prints by layering translucent veils of color over the original photograph using screenprint techniques. Each successive application of color transforms and personalizes the image further, creating what the artist describes as a kind of devotional process in which he probes his emotional and instinctive response to the landscape.
The result is a body of work that operates in the space between photography and painting, between documentary precision and subjective expression. Recurring motifs include transmission poles and power lines, which Koyama treats as metaphorical elements representing invisible forces that connect the visible world. His palette tends toward muted, atmospheric tones that evoke the quiet expansiveness of the Kanto Plain.
Koyama has exhibited in major print exhibitions in Japan and internationally, including the touring exhibition 'Contemporary Japanese Prints: The Urban Bonsai,' which introduced his work to Australian audiences in the early 1990s. His prints are held in the permanent collection of the Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney, and he is represented by Ronin Gallery in New York.
Key Facts
- Active Period
- 1951
- Nationality
- 🇯🇵Japan
- Movement
- Contemporary Mokuhanga
- Subjects
- LandscapesSilkscreen
- Works Indexed
- 1
Frequently Asked Questions
Avito Koyama is a Japanese printmaker whose screenprints transform documentary landscape photography into layered, meditative abstractions. Born in 1951 in Okayama Prefecture, he studied at the Sokei Academy of Fine Arts in Tokyo before developing a highly individual approach to printmaking.
Avito Koyama was active born in 1951. They were associated with the Contemporary Mokuhanga movement.
Avito Koyama's work was shaped by the Contemporary Mokuhanga tradition in Japanese woodblock printmaking. Contemporary Mokuhanga: Contemporary mokuhanga (literally "wood-block print") encompasses artists working from approximately 1970 to the present who continue or reinvent traditional Japanese woodblock printing techniques.
Avito Koyama's prints frequently feature landscapes, silkscreen.
Original prints by Avito Koyama can be found in collections including Art Institute of Chicago.
Avito Koyama is a gallery-represented printmaker whose work has been shown at established galleries specializing in contemporary Japanese prints. Gallery representation provides a consistent market. Prices range from $150 for smaller works to $3,000 for major compositions. Most prints sell in the $300–$1000 range. Gallery representation provides curated exposure and supports steady demand.