Megumi Yuasa (São Paulo SP 1938)
Megumi Yuasa is a self-taught sculptor and ceramist whose career in the visual arts began in 1964, when he produced his first pieces. Between 1965 and 1968 he lived in the interior of Goiás with his partner, Naoko Yuasa, where he researched techniques with the local clay and held his first solo exhibition in Goiânia. In 1971 he attended the Escola Brasil for six months at the invitation of Luiz Paulo Baravelli. From the beginning of his career he devoted himself to researching materials and techniques, incorporating metals, paints, stone and wood into ceramics, breaking with traditional patterns and exploring philosophical and political discourses in his work.
Megumi Yuasa's production is marked by constant participation in exhibitions, including two editions of the Bienal de São Paulo (1975 and 1977) and shows in Brazil and abroad. Over the years he has taken part in exhibitions of Japanese-Brazilian artists, events commemorating Japanese immigration and important group shows, such as those at the Museum of Contemporary Hispanic Art (New York) and the Instituto Tomie Ohtake, reinforcing his presence on the contemporary art scene.
In 1979 he began teaching ceramics, a field in which he remains active, organizing courses and workshops devoted to ceramic teaching and practice. Between 1981 and 1982 he acted as consultant to the Escola Senai Armando Arruda Sampaio. In 1982 he was invited to teach a course at the Universidade de Caxias do Sul, and in 1984 he presented Observação da Realidade [Observation of Reality] at the Museu de Arte do Rio Grande do Sul (Margs).
In 1988 Megumi Yuasa received the Sculpture Prize of the Associação Paulista de Críticos de Arte (APCA) [São Paulo Association of Art Critics] in recognition of his career. In 1989 he taught a course at the Brazilian Ceramics Seminar in Lisbon. His works are in the collections of institutions such as the Carnegie Museum of Art (USA), the Museu de Arte Moderna de São Paulo (MAM-SP), the Museu de Arte Contemporânea da USP (MAC-USP) and the Pinacoteca de São Paulo. In 2024 he returned with a solo exhibition at Gomide&Co, reaffirming the relevance of his production on the Brazilian art scene.
