This catalogue focuses on the formative drawings that Anne Truitt (1921–2004) made while living in Tokyo from 1964 to 1967—a pivotal moment for her, both artistically and intellectually. Though she later destroyed the sculptures she produced there (all in aluminum, a material she ultimately found unsuited to her intentions), this process of discovery was essential to the clarification of her sculptural vision. The innovations she developed in Japan, many in the form of drawings, would profoundly inform her lifelong practice. This book presents the full range of these works on paper, from hard-edge polygons to veil-like fields of color. An illustrated chronology provides a detailed account of her experiences in Japan and its impact on her subsequent work. Also reproduced for the first time are photographs of the 23 sculptures she made in Japan, all since lost or destroyed.

Text by: Anna Lovatt