"This is Not a Pipe," the title of Rene Magritte's 1926 painting of a pipe, succinctly illustrates a paradox in perception. On Magritte's canvas is a representation of a pipe, not an actual pipe, and so the title is perfectly valid. But how tempting to scoff at this, to regard Magritte as mischievous, slippery. That looks like a pipe, reasons modern man, therefore it is a pipe!
On the cover of his new book, "Uxom Art," Mario A is identified as a "Japanese Artist." The same description can be found on the artist's Web site. But one would not assume he was Japanese from looking at the 44-year-old, Swiss-born, German-raised artist. So what's up? Is Mario being mischievous, slippery?
"I am now referring to myself as a Japanese artist," explains Mario, who has lived and worked in this country for 15 years, "to provoke those who would say, 'It cannot be possible that he is a Japanese artist because he doesn't look like one.' This, I consider a very narrow-minded view of things."