"I want you to have fun. It's the only aim of this exhibition," said Takeshi "Beat" Kitano when "Gosse de peintre" originally opened at Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain in Paris two years ago. For an artist, that's quite an unusual goal — but then Kitano is not your usual artist.
In fact, the famous comedian, actor, filmmaker, presenter, screenwriter and author has repeatedly expressed embarrassment at being defined as an "artist," and in the video presentation accompanying the show — which has now been brought to Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery — he says, "If some people feel it's not art, I won't be offended."
Whether you think that's disingenuous or not depends on whether you hear it coming out of the mouth of Beat, the mischievous prankster, or Kitano, the Yohji Yamamoto-wearing cineaste who put himself on the international film map with serious art-house violence. He may not have attended an art school, but he clearly has an artistic eye.