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“Osaka for me is one of the greatest places on Earth.”
Hugues R. Mathieu, Mural Artist |
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Hugues R. Mathieu was born in New York and spent several formative years in Haiti where his parents originally come from. He has a graduate diploma (MFA) in figurative art from the New York Academy of Art, and a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree (BFA) from the Fashion Institute of Technology, also in New York. Although based in Osaka, Japan, he has created a successful portfolio of mural projects around the world with his work on show in such places as restaurants, hotels, lobbies and religious spaces. Among his prestige projects is a mural painted in a restaurant owned by actor Robert DeNiro. Now firmly established in Osaka, his Minami Horie atelier and office provide a fascinating insight into his life and inspirations. The atelier seems like a combination of antiques store, Mardi-Gras workshop and Renaissance Master’s studio - a treasure trove of textures, fabrics and colors. There are stacks of giant wood boards (for murals), several works in progress across the floor, neat rows of paints in pots and tubes, Romanesque objects in plaster of Paris, statuettes and other objects of anatomy including - what seems to be - a chiropractor’s skeleton next to his desk. This whole eclectic display points to HRM’s strong love for Renaissance art and his multi-cultural roots, combining influences as diverse as the exquisite ‘maiko’ (apprentice geisha) wearing Japanese ‘kimono’, the bohemia of Greenwich Village, the edginess of Madison Avenue advertising and the far-off turquoise waters, tropical hibiscus and voodoo of Haiti. |
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His murals display extraordinary versatility in terms of the materials and paints used, as well as the stylistic influences within the ‘frame’. Indeed, the ‘frame’ itself can be far more than a wall or ceiling as HRM will paint across glass or even over the air conditioners within a room. “Actually if you look inside the air conditioner you will see that I paint it on the inside too.” he says with some glee, an approach and attitude that accentuate HRM’s accomplishment and dedication to his projects.
HRM defines his style as ‘Café Au Lait’. The particular characteristics involve a dramatic assimilation of multiple artistic traditions plus a strong, yet subtle, usage of symbolism. A single HRM work can incorporate styles from the great European masters, the rough primitivism of African painting, the more local inspiration of Japanese ‘ukiyoe’, and just a touch of Haitian folklore.“It’s like creating a salad - you put a little bit of this in the bowl and mix in some of that, and it can taste great…” he explains. As well as Rembrandt and Michelangelo his heroes include the modern American artist Chuck Close, (a painter of large photo-realistic portraits) and world renowned artists such as Vincent Desiderio, (his professor at the New York Academy of Art) and Ken Otsuka (his professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology).
In addition HRM takes a highly pragmatic approach when it comes to using materials (which he says comes from the ‘rough and ready’ aspect of Haitian culture). Charcoal, acrylic paint and oil paint can all be used within the outline of the same one subject, perhaps even with some cement to lift the texture. (He has even experimented by painting with wine). This is not to suggest that he reaches for inferior or non-professional media. His brand paints are as precious as children. “I have some really expensive, really good paints – 200 dollars for a tube of Old Holland. It has such rich pigmentation, almost 80%, and the tube is so heavy”.
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Still in his early 30s, HRM has recently embarked on an ambitious new project - to create the world’s longest ‘true’ mural, an effort that will require a huge number of panels, each one approximately 2 meters high by 1 meter wide. Perhaps most surprising is that all the panels will be based on the beauty of just one subject - Osaka. Indeed, he calls the project “The Osaka Renaissance”
“I will show this mural and the beauty of Osaka all over the world. I will have some shows in New York. One project is about 11 meters long, and these mural projects can be connected. I am making Osaka’s ‘takaramono’ [special treasure] and that work is my love for Osaka”. The project has only just started so there are several thousand panels yet to paint. Obviously HRM is intending to be in Osaka for some time yet! The artist agrees, going so far as to emphasize that: “I want to be buried in Osaka – that’s how much I love Osaka. Even if I die in America I want to be brought back to be buried here.”
He will also have to put a great deal of planning into a project that is focused entirely on one city. But he uses the local libraries for a lot of his research. “Just to have a talent to paint is not enough – you have to do research in order to put meaning into the painting.… I study all the time, I listen to people and I study about Osaka,” he says, “We have to find the beauty of Osaka and put that on the canvas”. He sees the beauty in both the modern and historical architecture. “We have Sky Building and [Kyocera] Osaka Dome, which are wonderful designs, but if you’re talking about history…. Osaka Castle is beautiful”.
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“I went to Himeji Castle which people say is much more beautiful than Osaka Castle, but I’m sorry, I don’t think so. They say that Osaka’s castle was once destroyed while Himeji’s is untouched. But that does not mean Osaka Castle is not beautiful. Himeji is also beautiful – beyond beauty – but you cannot say that Osaka Castle is less beautiful. Prove to me that Himeji castle is more beautiful! Have you seen the wonderful jade color when Osaka castle is lit up at night? … I stayed in Kyoto for 2 weeks visiting temples. We cannot say that Kyoto is more beautiful than Osaka. It is like a bird with its own beauty. If you say that you have to ask what kind of beauty we are talking about…”
HRM’s primary research and inspiration comes from personal observation. “What I see in Osaka is not what other people see in Osaka so my work is to show what I see“. He believes that too many local people have forgotten much of the beauty around them so helping them rediscover is part of his mission. “I’m teaching people in Osaka. The ones who don’t know – I teach them that Osaka is beautiful, and the ones who do know – I remind them. For me, Osaka is one of the greatest places on Earth.”My dream is to establish a bridge between Haiti and Osaka. I’d like to see Osaka as a place where Haitian coffee and rum can be imported because I know how much people in Osaka enjoy meeting friends and family over a really good cup of coffee.”
The beauty HRM finds is not only within the local nature, history or architecture but within everyday life. There is his recurring theme of a mother and child in some kind of symbolic connection. “People know that I talk a lot about the ‘mamachari’ [bicycles with baby seats fixed to the back and front]. When I first saw this I was impressed – I thought, I want to paint this. Local people probably don’t notice the mamachari… The bicycle here is providing the connection between the mother and child. The baby feels safe. The mother steers to use the paths that are the smoothest as possible. The child instinctively knows this. This connection of baby and mother is something I always want to keep, so I can show people one of the beauties of Osaka.”
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HRM professes a lack of understanding about business in Osaka but this suggests some modesty on his part. Some of his business acumen is undoubtedly learned from the world-class interior designer Tony Chi who gave HRM his first major career break. Tony Chi includes the Osaka Hyatt Regency Hotel interiors among his extensive international portfolio and runs a small business empire linking up artists, designers, and architects. HRM clearly learned a lot from Tony Chi.
HRM has also learned from hard experience and perseverance. It was actually by mistake (a fortunate one retrospectively) that he first landed in Osaka. Coming to Osaka was related to a design commission deal in Hokkaido that went sour. “It fell through but it motivated me to try harder [to work in Japan]. It was a like a fish that slips through your fingers – you at least know that you can catch a fish – you at least know that it is possible. But the money for sponsoring my visa hadn’t come through so I had to keep advertising myself, keep showing my work. I didn’t give up trying, and I couldn’t leave Osaka - this was the town that was inspiring me”.
HRM’s business seems to be a model of how to make it good in Japan, as well as in Osaka. Not yet fluent in the language, he has nevertheless gained a small community of sponsors and clients who believe in him. (He counts the Mayor as a fan of his work). Indeed, language barriers have not been formidable at all, evidenced by the “special connection” he has with his friend and ‘sempai’ (mentor) Mr. Narimatsu of the Southern Cross Café where one of his murals covers the entire wall and ceiling of the second floor. “When I first came to Osaka I could not speak a word of Japanese. But people would go out of their way to help me. I always find that in Osaka. They try to speak to me in English and meet me on my level. Some foreigners [living in Japan] feel this to be discriminatory [because it suggests foreigners are incapable of mastering the language], just as when you go to a Japanese restaurant and the waitress gives you a spoon instead of chopsticks. But I always think it shows much more how they care about other people.” Comparing the service standards of different airlines, based on a recent trip to the USA, he observes that “the Japanese people did not invent the airplane but when you fly with a Japanese airliner it’s a whole different world. Even the economy class is like first class. What the Japanese have done with the meaning of travel is great.” |
Now HRM has a bi-lingual assistant who can ease the language barrier but the diversity and professionalism of his all-Japanese websites show he is as savvy about promoting a business as he is about the paints stacked in his atelier. The website ‘links’ page directs the user to his friends and sponsors. He has wisely set himself up with two sponsors for the brand acrylic paints he paints with – obviously a significant cost saving if your canvas is typically the size of a room – and, besides working for his mural clients, has a thriving art school called ‘Art-HRM Academy’ (AHA) which focuses on drawing through the study of human anatomy, for which his colorful atelier (described earlier) is an inspirational showcase. Equally, his various promotional pieces – postcards, flyers and color swatches - are designed and printed to the highest quality standards. (His business card folds out into a miniature portfolio). HRM knows that the Japanese market respects quality foremost.
In a clever piece of street marketing he ‘unveiled’ the first panels of the Osaka Renaissance series at a prominent city location. One strong motif he uses is the ‘icho’ (gingko tree), the gingko tree being the prefecture’s symbol tree and the same tree that runs either side of Osaka’s 4 kilometer long Midosuji Boulevard. This was where he unveiled the panels and, while he would never describe himself as a performance artist, his unveiling technique was unusual - one that he named the ‘HRM Lift Off’. Pre-event, the painting was coated with a dark layer of watercolor to hide the artwork. Then, to great applause from a fascinated crowd, he washed off this temporary surface with a water hose. He marks that moment as the actual birth of the work, and the panels are now being retouched to bring them to completed splendor. In fact, HRM prefers to paint in peace and quiet without an audience but if he can help promote Osaka in any way then a live event like the public unveiling guarantees some press attention. Despite what HRM may say there is certainly something of a showman inside him. He dresses the part too and for this interview appeared resplendent in dapper waistcoat, flamboyant cravat and elegant tails. |
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He has been smart in balancing his need to spread awareness of the HRM brand with a hands-on involvement in the local community. “If you live in a place and you can’t do something to make it a better place to live, life has no meaning... You must do something in society as we only have a short time to live.” He is an active member of a local NPO that works to keep the streets clean. Among other things, HRM has applied his talent to designing posters asking the public to keep pavements clear of bicycles. He has also reached for a different kind of brush in order to help clean up litter. “Even if I clean the streets everyday, it is not enough for me to repay the city that has given me so much”. “People may look at me as a ‘gaikokujin’ (foreigner). I am not a gaikokujin, I am an Osaka-jin. This is really my place” HRM concludes.
He does however face one major dilemma. With 5,000 panels to paint into a series of projects about Osaka, and with 11 meters needed per project, he will soon need a far bigger studio, or even a warehouse. Ironically, that will mean moving from the city he likes so much into the countryside. On the up side, if his atelier does grow large enough for so many panels, he will probably be able to open a new tourism attraction, complete with a ‘mamachari’ cycle course for mothers with young children. Now that too would bring Osaka a great deal more publicity !
Following the interview KIPPO received one further comment from HRM regarding his project to create the world’s longest mural.
“My intention to make the world’s longest mural has not changed. Indeed, it never will change. However, it will obviously take a great deal of time to provide the huge number of panels needed. Taking the necessary time is important because I believe, truly, in quality far more than quantity. Nevertheless, my goal towards the world’s longest mural will be achieved for sure. And it will be a mural that no one has ever seen before - a work designed, composed, painted and rendered with the utmost care. I am already applying this level of care to the project and this is yet another demonstration of my deep love for Osaka.” |
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