ICA kyoto TALK 063

Mysticism and Art Practices on the American West Coast

Speaker： Kaz Oshiro (Artist / Los Angeles, USA)
Moderator： Takuya Tsutsumi (Program Director of ICA Kyoto)
*This talk will be conducted in Japanese only.

For this ICA Kyoto TALK, we welcome Los Angeles-based artist Kaz Oshiro, who will speak on the relationship between mysticism, Zen thought, counterculture, and contemporary art on the American West Coast. Drawing on his own experience of moving to the United States and his activities in Los Angeles, Oshiro will trace the intersections between Japanese culture and West Coast artistic practice through the lens of the Beat Generation, youth culture, and the reception of Zen thought through D.T. Suzuki. The talk will also touch on the artistic practices of Mike Kelley, Jim Shaw, and Wallace Berman, as well as the musical expressions of John Cage, La Monte Young, and Terry Riley, examining how spirituality and inner experience came to connect with artistic expression in West Coast culture from the 1960s onward. Spanning not only art but also philosophy, music, literature, and youth culture, the talk will offer an opportunity to reflect on the possibilities of mysticism and the sense of “the invisible” today.

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Event Details

Date： June 12 (Fri.), 2026, 18:30-20:00
Venue： Touseian Noh Stage
Capacity： Approx. 40 persons / Advance booking is not required
Admission： Free
Organized by： ICA Kyoto, Kyoto University of the Arts Graduate School
Cooperation： Higashiyama Artists Placement Service (HAPS)

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Kaz Oshiro

Born in Okinawa in 1967. He moved to the United States in 1986. He obtained a Bachelor of Arts in 1998 and a Master of Fine Arts in 2002 from California State University, Los Angeles, and has been active based in Los Angeles. Oshiro creates three-dimensional hyperrealistic paintings, reconfiguring the structure of traditional painting with a unique perspective while referencing pop art, minimalism, and abstract expressionism. His works explore various binary oppositions such as three-dimensional vs. flat, abstract vs. figurative, and reality vs. illusion. Notable exhibitions include “STILL ALIVE” at Aichi 2022, “Chasing Ghost” at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 2014, and “Paintings and Works on Paper” at the Las Vegas Art Museum in 2006.

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About ICA Kyoto TALK

ICA Kyoto was set up in 2020 as an adjunct to the Kyoto University of the Arts Graduate School, and since then has offered an ongoing program of talks with guest artists, curators, and researchers working in Japan and elsewhere. ICA Kyoto TALK is part of this program, and has now merged with the previous Global Art Talk initiative in a platform designed to connect Kyoto with diverse art scenes worldwide, and encourage dialogue. The aim of ICA Kyoto TALK is to open up new perspectives by moving between local, on-the-ground activities and global trends to deliver authentic experiences of our multilayered world.

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Contact

info-icakyoto@office.kyoto-art.ac.jp

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