Dennis Mukai plays with a traditional form, the human figure--the ultimate aesthetic challenge. While the contributing artists for Vogue use vibrant color and electric line to describe clothes, he uses the same tools to depict women. The resulting images have captivated both male and female viewers. "What takes it away from normal portraiture art," says the 32-year-old Japanese-horn, California-raised artist, "is the gestural play. Pinups were realistic. You could reach out and touch the skin of a Vargas girl. Here you are playing with the illusion, the art of design. For some artists, line and flat color are inspired. For me, it's what is missing--sometimes there's nothing there and the eye has to fill in." Mukai acknowledges that comparisons between him and his late teacher and friend, Patrick Nagel, are inevitable, flattering and occasionally frustrating. When Dennis was a student at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, he studied with Pat. Mukai was influenced by the subject matter. "Today, anyone who does a beautiful woman gets compared with Patrick," he says. Like his late colleague's. Mukai's popular images have found welcome homes at Playboy (his paintings illustrate The Playboy Advisor each month). Mirage Editions and galleries throughout the world. There are important differences between the two artists, however. Nagel idealized women, turning every one of them into a Nagel woman. "I don't want to just idealize them," says Mukai, "I want to keep the portraiture. A lot of it is what I am naturally attracted to--for the paintings to be compositionally strong, I need to use the power of full lips, intense eyes, a well-defined jaw line. These are the things I need to enhance." The rest is artistry. Both men and women buy his paintings. Men tend to buy the portraits that stare you down; women are attracted to the softer, more lyrical images with sidelong glances. When asked by one reporter why he drew women, Mukai replied, "I prefer drawing women as opposed to still lifes and landscapes because women are mysterious, sexy and interesting." His paintings are a tribute to the irrepressible sensuousness of women, neither sexist nor sexual, but animated and vibrant. Arigato, Dennis.
©1990 Special Editions Limited/Mirage Editions, Inc.
©1990 Special Editions Limited/Mirage Editions, Inc.
