| In 1969 New York artist Tal Streeter turned away from his rapidly expanding career and left for Japan to study the art of kite making. Following his return to the United States two years later, he wrote the "The Art of the Japanese Kite," arguably the most influencial book about kites ever published in English. His journey and subsequent account of Japanese kite making traditions, which go back over 1000 years, has become the definitive resource and inspiration for a generation of North American kite making artists.
Tako: Japanese Kites Inspire Western Kitemakers, at the Weisman Art Museum, surveyed Streeter's work and that of three other prominent kite artists -- Scott Skinner, Stuart Allen and Robert Trepanier -- along with a selection of postwar kites made by Japanese artists.
Kites in the exhibition, installed high off the museum's walls, range in size from a few inches to 40 feet. All are meant to fly and most have touched the air over two or three continents. The exhibition also featured Streeter's "Five Mile Long Flying Red line," a 12 inch by 5 mile long kite tail. Taking advantage of the Weisman's lofty exhibition spaces, Tako: Japanese Kites Inspire Western Kitemakers encouraged viewers to look up and consider art from a new perspective. |
