In the 1960s and 1970s, Tadanori Yokoo gave full play to the searing intensity of his personal vision as a graphic designer and illustrator. With his multi-layered worldview unchanged even after switching to painting in 1981, the scope and breadth of his activities continued to expand internationally. Tadanori Yokoo is an inimitable figure, a one-of-a-kind. His creative drive undiminished even today in the 2010s, he almost greedily, yet quite naturally, continues to challenge the unknown.

Yokoo’s rich body of poster and painting work has previously been shown both domestically and abroad, but for this exhibit the Ginza Graphic Gallery has focused on his designs for books and magazines. Seemingly uninhibited book jackets that leave a powerful impression about what lies within and magazine covers dancing with hand lettering are actually built upon a firm foundation in graphic design and typography, created through a careful calculation of all aspects of bookmaking.

This exhibition presents Yokoo’s mastery of book design through sketches, paste-ups, style sheets, and proof sheets as well as completed books.

In this first ever exhibit of Yokoo’s book design, books can be observed up close to reveal the universe of Tadanori Yokoo, flowing with an energy that all but spills from the page.