Biography
Keisuke Yamaguchi, who works under the artist name OZ, is a contemporary Japanese painter who carries the spirit of the floating world into the twenty-first century through vibrant compositions that blend traditional Japanese aesthetics with thoroughly modern imagery. Born in Nagano Prefecture in 1986, he studied architecture at Nagano National College of Technology beginning in 2003 and continued at the Nagaoka Institute of Design, where he studied Architecture and the Environment before shifting his focus entirely to painting.
Inspired by the woodblock prints of nineteenth and early twentieth century landscape masters, OZ has developed a distinctive visual language that feels simultaneously rooted in Japanese tradition and alive with contemporary energy. His paintings deploy bold color, dynamic composition, and an intuitive sense of rhythm that recalls both ukiyo-e and street art. He considers the power of unseen forces, both natural and human, and his work often depicts landscapes, shrines, and seasonal scenes transformed by an almost electric vitality.
OZ integrates process and product through live painting performances that have drawn crowds from the ruins of Ueda Castle in Nagano to Central Park in New York City. These performances, in which he creates large-scale works in real time before an audience, emphasize the physical energy and improvisational spirit that animate all his work.
In 2016, he was named the inaugural winner of the Ronin Globus Artist-in-Residence Program, which brought him to New York City to live, work, and exhibit. He subsequently collaborated with two master engravers and a printer to produce a series of original woodblock prints for The Peninsula Tokyo's Ukiyo-e Art Project, bridging his contemporary painting practice with the traditional printmaking techniques that first inspired him. He has exhibited at Ronin Gallery, Art Front Gallery, the ISE Cultural Foundation, and venues across Japan and the United States.
Key Facts
- Active Period
- 1986
- Nationality
- 🇯🇵Japan
- Movement
- Contemporary Mokuhanga
Frequently Asked Questions
Keisuke Yamaguchi, who works under the artist name OZ, is a contemporary Japanese painter who carries the spirit of the floating world into the twenty-first century through vibrant compositions that blend traditional Japanese aesthetics with thoroughly modern imagery. Born in Nagano Prefecture in 1986, he studied architecture at Nagano National College of Technology beginning in 2003 and continued at the Nagaoka Institute of Design, where he studied Architecture and the Environment before shifting his focus entirely to painting.
Keisuke Yamaguchi (OZ) was active born in 1986. They were associated with the Contemporary Mokuhanga movement.
Keisuke Yamaguchi (OZ)'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.
Keisuke Yamaguchi (OZ)'s prints frequently feature landscapes, architecture, pop art, snow scenes.
Keisuke Yamaguchi (OZ) 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.
