WORK IN PROGRESS

 

For Yoshitomo Nara, works on paper are a crucial medium through which he conveys his creativity and most intimate emotions. In the 1980s when he was studying at the Aichi Prefectural University of the Arts, he lived by himself in a mobile home surrounded by the forest where he blasted music every day. He would pick up any scrap pieces of paper that were lying around and use them to record his inspiration. He would write down lyrics from the music that he was listening to, and any rebellious manifestos that came to mind. He recalled, “Thinking back, I think it was like writing a pictorial diary. I drew things and events that moved me every day, and this process made me feel that every day was meaningful.” To most contemporary artists, the oil painting medium is held in higher regard than works on paper. Yet, this hierarchy does not apply to Yoshitomo Nara’s works. On the contrary, his diverse use of media is a testament to the holistic approach of his artistic pursuit. Nara utilizes any surface to draw, including envelopes, graph paper, and any scrap materials he can find. After spending 12 years abroad in Germany, he returned to his native country Japan.

 

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Introduction

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Biographical Context

Born in 1959 in Japan’s rural Aomori Prefecture, Nara’s youth was marked by his country’s rapid post-war economic development and an influx of Western pop-culture, from Disney animation to punk and rock and roll. The artist expresses heartfelt nostalgia for the retro media, record-sleeves and comic books, that offered escapism from an otherwise solitary childhood.

“Of course if you think back to the ’70s, information moved very differently. There was no Internet obviously and even the release date of albums in Japan could be delayed as much as six months … I would just sit there, listen to the music, look at the art on the cover and I think I really developed my imagination through that.”

This sensitivity to the worn, tactile quality of objects is triumphant in his art today and distinguishes him from the likes of Takashi Murakami and his Superflat movement.

“I loved to draw every day and the scrawled sketches, never shown to anybody, started piling up. Like journal entries reflecting the events of each day, they sometimes intersected [with] memories from the past. My little everyday world became a trigger for the imagination, and I learned to develop and capture the imagery that arose.”

As early as his time at Aichi Prefectural University of Fine Arts in the 1980s, Nara began to draw onto envelopes, cardboard, and scraps of found paper. He continued these explorations at the prestigious Kunstakademie Düsseldorf where, under the tutorship of German Neo-Expressionist painter A. R. Penck, he was encouraged to work fluidly between painting and drawing.

The Central Role of Works on Paper

Works on paper are not secondary within Nara’s oeuvre; they are foundational. While many artists use drawing as preparation, Nara frequently treats it as a complete and autonomous medium. His works on paper function simultaneously as intimate confessions, conceptual laboratories, and fully resolved artworks.

Executed in pencil, colored pencil, ink, watercolor, gouache, and occasionally acrylic, these works preserve the immediacy of thought. The paper surface captures pressure, hesitation, and subtle shifts in tone. Nara often works on modest supports, sometimes even found materials or cardboard, reinforcing the raw and unpretentious character of his practice. The fragility of paper contrasts with the psychological intensity of his figures. This tension between delicacy and emotional force is central to their impact.

Recurring Motifs: The Defiant Child

The most recognizable subject in Nara’s works on paper is the child with an oversized head and piercing eyes. These figures are never merely “cute.” They confront the viewer directly, sometimes holding a knife or standing in isolation against an empty background. The ambiguity is deliberate. Nara’s children oscillate between innocence and quiet aggression, vulnerability and defiance. Their expressions suggest inner worlds shaped by solitude, frustration, and resilience. The minimal compositions, often devoid of contextual detail, intensify psychological focus.

Animals, particularly dogs, also appear frequently. They function as companions, alter egos, or silent witnesses. Through these pared-down scenes, Nara explores themes of alienation, autonomy, and emotional resistance.

Technique and Material Language

At first glance, Nara’s drawings appear deceptively simple. Yet their clarity is the result of precise control. Fine pencil lines define facial contours with remarkable economy. Colored pencils are layered to produce subtle gradations. Watercolor introduces softness and atmospheric halos, while gouache adds density and opacity.

The white space surrounding the figure is never accidental. It acts as emotional space—sometimes isolating, sometimes luminous. In certain works, handwritten phrases in English or Japanese appear alongside the image, echoing song lyrics or fragmentary thoughts. These inscriptions reinforce the diaristic nature of the medium. The reduction of visual elements heightens emotional directness. Nothing distracts from the gaze.

Exhibitions and Institutional Recognition

Works on paper have been central to major institutional exhibitions. Important retrospectives include presentations at the Yokohama Museum of Art, the Asia Society, the Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art, and a comprehensive traveling retrospective organized by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 2021–2022.

In these exhibitions, drawings were presented not as supporting documents but as the emotional core of Nara’s artistic development. The continuity between intimate paper works and larger installations became evident: scale changes, but psychological intensity remains.

Importance Within His Oeuvre and Legacy

Within Nara’s broader body of work, paper is the most immediate medium. Paintings and sculptures may achieve monumentality, but works on paper preserve intimacy. They provide direct access to the artist’s evolving iconography across decades—from the sharper, more confrontational figures of the 1990s to the more contemplative and introspective children of recent years.

Nara occupies a singular position in contemporary art. Although often associated with the broader context of Japanese contemporary culture, his practice resists easy categorization. His works on paper bridge illustration, manga aesthetics, European Neo-Expressionist influence, and punk sensibility without collapsing into any one of them.

Their legacy lies in their emotional clarity. A single sheet of paper bearing the steady gaze of one solitary figure can convey vulnerability, defiance, and empathy at once. In an art world often driven by scale and spectacle, Nara’s works on paper remind us that intensity does not require monumentality. They are small in dimension, yet expansive in psychological resonance.

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Auction Market Overview

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2025 Auction Highlights

30 lots sold at auction in 2025 for a total turnover of USD 4,319,886. With 4 lots failing to sell, the sell-through rate is 88%. The top lot is Frog, a drawing dated 1998, that sold at Christie’s in London, on 16 October 2025, for GBP 444,500 (USD 595,630).

2025 Top 6 Lots

2 lot sold for more than USD 500,000, generating a cumulative turnover of USD 1,145,005, representing 26.5% of the total turnover for 2025. 15 lots sold for more than USD 100,000, generating a cumulative turnover of USD 3,569,022, representing 82.6% of the total turnover for 2025.

 

 

2023 Auction Highlights

42 WoP sold at auction in 2023 for a total turnover of USD 8,364,450. With 6 lots unsold, the sell-through rate is 88%. The highest price was achieved by Rock You sold at Sotheby’s Hong-Kong on 6 April 2023 for HKD 11,945,000 (USD 1,521,636).

2023 WoP Top 6 Lots

24 lots sold over USD 100,000 for a total turnover of USD 7,659,078, amounting to 91.6% of the total turnover.

2022 Auction Highlights

58 WoP sold at auction in 2022 for a total turnover of USD 15,876,842. With 7 lots failing to sell, the sell-through rate is 89%. The highest price of 2022 was achieved at Sotheby’s in Hong-Kong on 27 April 2022, when Only Faces Appear in My Mind, a giant work on paper created in 2000 sold at a record HKD 24,575,000 (USD 3,131,849).

2022 Top 6 Lots

4 lots sold over USD 1 million, generating a cumulative turnover of USD 6,148,302, representing 38.7% of the total turnover for 2022.

 

 

 

 

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Top Lots

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WORK IN PROGRESS

#1. Only Faces Appear in My Mind, 2000

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 27 April 2022
Estimated: HKD 20,000,000 – 30,000,000
HKD 24,575,000 / USD 3,132,345

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | Only Faces Appear in My Mind 僅在我腦海中出現的臉孔 | Contemporary Evening Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Only Faces Appear in My Mind, 2000
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
201.5 x 203.5 cm (79 3/8 x 80 1/8 inches)

#2. Daydreamer, 2003

Phillips Hong-Kong: 27 November 2016
Estimated: HKD 5,000,000 – 7,000,000
HKD 12,080,000 / USD 1,557,435
WORK ON PAPER

Yoshitomo Nara 20th Century & Contemporary Art & Design Evening Sale

YOSHITOMO NARA
Daydreamer, 2003
Pastel, acrylic and color pencil on paper
156.5 x 136.5 cm (61-5/8 x 53-3/4 inches)

#3. Rock You, 2006

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 6 April 2023
Estimated: HKD 4,200,000 – 6,000,000
HKD 11,945,000 / USD 1,521,685
WORK ON PAPER

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | Rock You | Contemporary Day Auction | 2023 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Rock You, 2006
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
109.5 x 71.5 cm (43 1/8 x 28 1/8 inches)

#4. Attention, 2003

Sotheby’s New-York: 17 May 2019
Estimated: USD 900,000 – 1,200,000
USD 1,520,000
WORK ON PAPER

Results for “yoshitomo nara attention”

YOSHITOMO NARA
Attention, 2003
Pastel, acrylic and colored pencil on paper
148.3 x 136.5 cm (58-3/8 x 53-3/4 inches)
Signed

#5. Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina, 2005

Christie’s New-York: 22 November 2024
Estimated: USD 800,000 – 1,200,000
USD 1,405,200
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina | Christie’s

REPEAT SALE

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 2 December 2021
Estimated: HKD 9,000,000 – 15,000,000
HKD 11,050,000 / USD 1,417,865

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina; Mariana; Suni; & Christina | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina, 2005
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper and cardboard, in four parts
Installation dimensions: 69.7 x 221 cm (27 1/2 x 87 inches) (approx.)
(i) Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina
Acrylic on paper
51.4 x 37.5 cm (20 1/4 x 14 3/4 inches)
(ii) Mariana
Acrylic and colored pencil on cardboard
69.7 x 37.5 cm (27 1/2 x 14 3/4 inches)
Signed with in Japanese, titled and dated ‘2005 MARIANA’ (on the reverse)
(iii) Suni
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
51.4 x 37.5 cm (20 1/4 x 14 3/4 inches)
Signed with in Japanese, titled and dated ‘2005 SUNI’ (on the reverse)
(iv) Christina
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
51.4 x 37.5 cm (20 1/4 x 14 3/4 inches)
Signed with in Japanese, titled and dated ‘2005 Christina’ (on the reverse)

#6. Greeting for Birds (set of 96), 2006

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 2 April 2017
Estimated: HKD 5,500,000 – 7,000,000
HKD 9,700,000 / USD 1,248,225
WORK ON PAPER

(#1053) Nara Yoshitomo

YOSHITOMO NARA
Greeting for Birds (set of 96), 2006
Colored pencil on paper
Each: 30×42 cm (11-3/4 x 16-1/2 inches)
Signed in Japanese and dated 2006 on the reverse of the first page
This work is accompanied with an original wooden box

#7. PEACE ON YOUR FEET, 2004

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 2 December 2020
Estimated: HKD 7,000,000 – 9,000,000
HKD 9,250,000 / USD 1,193,280
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), PEACE ON YOUR FEET | Christie’s

REPEAT SALE

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 5 October 2015
Estimated: HKD 2,200,000 – 3,000,000
HKD 3,080,000 / USD 397,410
WORK ON PAPER

Results for “nara peace on your feet”

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
PEACE ON YOUR FEET, 2004
Colored pencil and acrylic on paper
132.4 x 115.9 cm (52-1/8 x 45-5/8 inches)
Signed with artist’s signature, dated ‘2004’ (on the reverse)

#8. Sorry, Just Couldn’t Draw Left Eye!, 2003

Sotheby’s New-York: 20 May 2022
Estimated: USD 600,000 – 800,000
USD 1,008,000
WORK ON PAPER

Sorry, Just Couldn’t Draw Left Eye! | Contemporary Day Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Sorry, Just Couldn’t Draw Left Eye!, 2003
Acrylic, pastel, graphite, paper collage and tape on paper
137×100 cm (54 x 39 1/4 inches)
Signed, titled and dated 2003 (on the verso)

#9. Standing Alone, 2003

Sotheby’s New-York: 11 March 2022
Estimated: USD 300,000 – 400,000
USD 1,008,000
WORK ON PAPER

Standing Alone | Contemporary Curated | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Standing Alone, 2003
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
51.4 x 36.2 cm (20 1/4 x 14 1/4 inches)

Girl with a Knife, 1999

Christie’s London: 13 October 2022
Estimated: GBP 250,000 – 350,000
GBP 882,000 / USD 1,000,455
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Girl with a Knife, 1999
Acrylic, graphite, colored pencil and crayon on paper
51×36 cm (20 1/8 x 14 1/8 inches)
Signed in Japanese, titled and dated ‘Girl with a knife 99’ (on the reverse)

 

 

 

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2026 Auction Results

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It’s a Cold Day, 2000

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 30 March 2026
Estimated: HKD 2,000,000 – 3,000,000
HKD 4,800,000 / USD 613,025
WORK ON PAPER

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | It’s a Cold Day 寒冷的一天 | Contemporary Day

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
It’s a Cold Day, 2000
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
38.7 x 30 cm (15-1/4 x 11-7/8 inches)
Signed and dated 2000 (on the reverse)

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USD 500,000

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Untitled, 1997

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 28 March 2026
Estimated: HKD 800,000 – 1,200,000
HKD 2,286,000 / USD 291,955
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Untitled | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled, 1997
Colored pencil and acrylic on paper
22.9 x 18.9 cm (9 x 7-1/2 inches)
Signed with the artist’s signature and dated ’97’ (on the reverse)

Untitled, 2007

Christie’s London: 7 March 2026
Estimated: GBP 100,000 – 150,000
GBP 190,500 / USD 254,490

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Untitled | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled, 2007
(The Yoshitomo Nara Foundation: The Works, digital, no. YNF4474)
Colored pencil on colored paper
41.9 x 29.5 cm (16-1/2 x 11-5/8 inches)
Signed in Japanese and dated ’07’ (on the reverse)

In the Puddle, 2004

Sotheby’s Singapore: 25 January 2026
Estimated: SGD 130,000 – 250,000
SGD 241,300 / USD 189,675

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | In the Puddle 在水窪裏 | Modern & Contemporary Art | 2026 | Sotheby’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
In the Puddle, 2004
Colored pencil on envelope
21.5 x 23.2 cm (8-1/2 x 9-1/8 inches)
Signed, titled and dated 2004 (on the reverse)

Deine Reute (Your Route), 2016

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 30 March 2026
Estimated: HKD 900,000 – 1,500,000
HKD 1,408,000 / USD 179,820

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | Deine Reute (Your Route) 你的路途 | Contemporary

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Deine Reute (Your Route), 2016
Pencil on paper
65×50 cm (25-5-8 x 19-5/8 inches)
Signed and dated 2016 (on the reverse)

Untitled (No. YNF1407), 1995

SBI Art Auction: 24 January 2026
Estimated: JPY 3,000,000 – 5,000,000
JPY 25,785,000 / USD 165,585

RESULTS｜SBI Art Auction

YOSHITOMO NARA
Untitled (No. YNF1407), 1995
Studio No. D-1995-069
Pen and colored pencil on paper
29.6 x 41.8 cm (11-5/8 x 16-1/2 inches)
Signed, dated and inscribed “So that makes you happy?” on the lower part

Untitled, 2003

Phillips Hong-Kong: 29 March 2026
Estimated: HKD 800,000 – 1,200,000
HKD 1,161,000 / USD 148,275

Yoshitomo Nara Modern & Contemporary Art

YOSHITOMO NARA
Untitled, 2003
Colored pencil on paper
37.1 x 24 cm (14-5/8 x 9-1/2 inches)
Signed with the artist’s initial ‘Na [in Japanese] 2003’ on the reverse
Registered in the Yoshitomo Nara Online Catalogue Raisonné under registration number YNF3616

To Exploit People of Nature (No. YNF3849), 2004

SBI Art Auction: 24 January 2026
Estimated: JPY 8,000,000 – 14,000,000
JPY 23,000,000 / USD 147,700

RESULTS｜SBI Art Auction

YOSHITOMO NARA
To Exploit People of Nature (No. YNF3849), 2004
Studio No. D-2004-016
Colored pencil on paper
31.8 x 24.1 cm (12-1/2 x 9-1/2 inches)
Signed and dated on the reverse

Untitled (No. YNF2993), 2001

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 28 March 2026
Estimated: HKD 500,000 – 800,000
HKD 863,600 / USD 110,295
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Untitled | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled (No. YNF2993), 2001
Colored pencil and pencil on paper
25.8 x 16.2 cm (10-1/8 x 6-3/8 inches)
Signed with the artist’s signature and dated ‘2001’ (on the reverse)

 

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USD 100,000

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Untitled, 1998

Christie’s New-York: 26 February 2026
Estimated: USD 60,000 – 80,000
USD 69,850

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Untitled | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled, 1998
(The Yoshitomo Nara Foundation: The Works, digital, no. YNF2321)
Colored pencil on paper
22.8 x 15.2 cm (8-7/8 x 6 inches)

Untitled (Who Snatched the Babies), 2001-2002

SBI Art Auction: 24 January 2026
Estimated: JPY 3,000,000 – 5,000,000
JPY 3,910,000 / USD 25,110

RESULTS｜SBI Art Auction

YOSHITOMO NARA
Untitled (Who Snatched the Babies) (No. YNF3253), 2001-2002
Studio No. D-2002-188
Pen and colored pencil on paper
10×19 cm (3-7/8 x 7-1/2 inches)

Blackguard Angel, 1995

SBI Art Auction: 24 January 2026
Estimated: JPY 3,000,000 – 5,000,000
JPY 9,545,000 / USD 61,295

RESULTS｜SBI Art Auction

YOSHITOMO NARA
Blackguard Angel (No. YNF1410), 1995
Studio No. D-1995-072
Pen and colored pencil on paper
24.4 x 30.5 cm (9-5/8 x 12 inches)
Signed and dated on the lower right

 

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Lots Passed

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Untitled, 1997

AN EYE FOR COLOUR: WORKS FROM A PRIVATE COLLECTION
Christie’s London: 7 March 2026
Estimated: GBP 100,000 – 150,000
PASSED

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Untitled | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled, 1997
(The Yoshitomo Nara Foundation: The Works, digital no. YNF2030)
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
31.8 x 23.8 cm (12-1/2 x 9-3/8 inches)
Signed in Japanese, inscribed and dated ‘Kleine Tauferin mit dem Messer ’97’ (lower edge)

 

 

 

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2025 Auction Results

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30 lots sold at auction in 2025 for a total turnover of USD 4,319,886. With 4 lots failing to sell, the sell-through rate is 88%. The top lot is Frog, a drawing dated 1998, that sold at Christie’s in London, on 16 October 2025, for GBP 444,500 (USD 595,630).

2025 Top 6 Lots

2 lot sold for more than USD 500,000, generating a cumulative turnover of USD 1,145,005, representing 26.5% of the total turnover for 2025. 15 lots sold for more than USD 100,000, generating a cumulative turnover of USD 3,569,022, representing 82.6% of the total turnover for 2025.

 

#1. Frog, 1998

Christie’s London: 16 October 2025
Estimated: GBP 300,000 – 500,000
GBP 444,500 / USD 595,630
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Frog | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Frog, 1998
Acrylic on paper
36×35 cm (14 1/8 x 13 3/4 inches)
Signed in Japanese, titled and dated ‘FROG 98’ (on the reverse)

#2. Power to the Punx (No. YNF2125), 1995-1998

SBI Art Auction: 25 October 2025
Estimated: JPY 25,000,000 – 35,000,000
JPY 83,950,000 / USD 549,375
WORK ON PAPER

RESULTS｜SBI Art Auction

YOSHITOMO NARA
Power to the Punx (No. YNF2125), 1995-1998
Studio No. D-1998-037
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
40×58 cm (15 3/4 x 22 7/8 inches)
Signed and dated on the lower right
Signed, dated and inscribed “Let’s valse the Solid fist.” on the reverse

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USD 500,000

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#3. Untitled 95-26, 1995

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 29 September 2025
Estimated: HKD 450,000 – 750,000
HKD 2,032,000 / USD 261,185
WORK ON PAPER

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | Untitled 95-26 無題 95-26 | Modern & Contemporary Day Auction | 2025 | Sotheby’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Untitled 95-26, 1995
Ink on paper
29.4 x 20.8 cm (11 5/8 x 8 1/4 inches)
Signed and dated 95 (lower right)

#4. Cold Side, 1995

#5. Untitled (246 on the Motorway), 2015

Seoul Auction: 28 March 2025
Estimated: KRW 270,000,000 – 350,000,000
KRW 318,600,000 / USD 217,920
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled (246 on the Motorway), 2015
Colored pencil on envelope
24×33 cm (9 3/8 x 13  inches)

#6. Kleine Taucherin auf der Wolke, 1996

Phillips Hong-Kong: 28 September 2025
Estimated: HKD 1,000,000 – 2,000,000
HKD 1,677,000 / USD 215,555
WORK ON PAPER

Yoshitomo Nara Modern & Contemporary Art Day Sale

USD 200,000

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#7. Untitled, 2008

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 26 September 2025
Estimated: HKD 900,000 – 1,500,000
HKD 1,524,000 / USD 195,885
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Untitled | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled, 2008
Pencil on paper
65.1 x 50.1 cm (25 5/8 x 19 3/4 inches)
Inscribed ‘LONE STAR GIRL’ (bottom edge)
Signed with artist’s signature and dated ’08’ (on the reverse)

#8. Drumming Girl, 2013

K Auction Seoul: 19 February 2025
Estimated: KRW 240,000,000 – 300,000,000
KRW 276,000,000 / USD 191,270
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Drumming Girl, 2013
Colored pencil on envelope
22.6 x 16.4 cm (8 7/8 x 6 1/2  inches)

#9. Untitled (Hi Watt Hi Watt), 2005

Christie’s London: 6 March 2025
Estimated: GBP 80,000 – 120,000
GBP 138,600 / USD 177,408
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Untitled (Hi Watt Hi Watt) | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled (Hi Watt Hi Watt), 2005
Colored pencil, crayon and acrylic on envelope
24×33 cm (9 1/2 x 13 inches)
Signed with the artist’s initials and dated ‘Y N. 2005’ (on the reverse)

#10. Untitled, 2008

Ravenel Taiwan: 30 November 2025
Estimated: TWD 5,000,000 – 6,000,000
TWD 5,520,000 / USD 175,795

Ravenel | Yoshitomo NARA《Untitled》 Ravenel Autumn Auction 2025 Taipei Lot 025

YOSHITOMO NARA (Japanese, 1959)
Untitled, 2008
Mixed media on paper (envelope)
22.5 x 16 cm (8 7/8 x 6 3/8 inches)

#11. Untitled, 2005

Seoul Auction: 22 April 2025
Estimated: KRW 220,000,000 – 350,000,000
KRW 247,800,000 / USD 174,205
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled, 2005
Colored pencil on envelope
37.5 x 28.5 cm (14 3/4 x 11 3/8  inches)

#12. Untitled, 1998

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 26 November 2025
Estimated: HKD 120,000 – 220,000
HKD 1,016,000 / USD 130,530
WORK ON PAPER

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | Untitled 無題 | Modern & Contemporary Discoveries | 2025 | Sotheby’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Untitled, 1998
Watercolor and ink on paper
31.9 x 23.8 cm (12 1/2 x 9 3/8 inches)

#13. Untitled, 2004

Sotheby’s London: 25 June 2025
Estimated: GBP 50,000 – 70,000
GBP 88,900 / USD 121,140
WORK ON PAPER

Untitled | Contemporary Day Auction | 2025 | Sotheby’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Untitled, 2004
Colored pencil on envelope
11×23 cm (4 3/8 x 9 inches)
Signed with the artist’s initials and dated ’04 (on the verso)

#14. Fire on My Head (No. YNF6506), 2018

SBI Art Auction: 24 May 2025
Estimated: JPY 10,000,000 – 15,000,000
JPY 14,950,000 / USD 104,865
WORK ON PAPER

RESULTS｜SBI Art Auction

YOSHITOMO NARA
Fire on My Head (No. YNF6506), 2018
Studio No. D-2018-003
Pencil on paper
65×50 cm (25 5/8 x 19 5/8 inches)
Signed and dated on the reverse

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USD 100,000

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#15. Untitled, 2002

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 26 September 2025
Estimated: HKD 600,000 – 800,000
HKD 762,000 / USD 97,945
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Untitled | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled, 2002
Colored pencil on paper
29.7 x 21 cm (11 3/4 x 8 1/4 inches)

#16. Sketch for the Sculpture, 2011-2012

Seoul Auction: 22 April 2025
Estimated: KRW 100,000,000 – 150,000,000
KRW 100,000,000 (Hammer)
KRW 118,000,000 / USD 82,955
WORK ON PAPER

Seoul Auction

YOSHITOMO NARA
Sketch for the Sculpture, 2011-2012
Pencil on paper
51.5 x 35.8 cm (14.1 x 20.3 inches)

#17. Long Long Way to Home, 2004

K Auction Seoul: 19 March 2025
Estimated: KRW 84,000,000 – 250,000,000
KRW 90,000,000 (Hammer)
KRW 103,500,000 / USD 71,310
WORK ON PAPER

KA-Search:yoshitomo nara

YOSHITOMO NARA
Long Long Way to Home, 2004
Colored pencil on cardboard
14.7 x 20.5 cm (5.8 x 4.1 inches)
Signed on the reverse

#18. Untitled (Who Snatched the Babies), 2002

Christie’s London: 6 March 2025
Estimated: GBP 40,000 – 60,000
GBP 44,100 / USD 56,448
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Untitled (Who Snatched the Babies) | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled (Who Snatched the Babies), 2002
Colored pencil and graphite on envelope
26.2 x 12 cm (10 1/4 x 4 3/4 inches)

#19. Untitled, 2001-2002

Phillips London: 18 October 2025
Estimated: GBP 30,000 – 50,000
GBP 38,700 / USD 51,860
WORK ON PAPER

Yoshitomo Nara Modern & Contemporary Art Day Sale

#20. An Weinachten Keine von Den Tannenbaume, 1991

#21. Untitled (Portrait Drawing), 2000

#22. Untitled (No. YNF2015), 1993

 

---

Lots Passed

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Absolut Vodka Bottle
(Fuck bout everything! But I try to go…), 2000

Untitled, 1997

Phillips Hong-Kong: 28 September 2025
Estimated: HKD 500,000 – 700,000
PASSED

Yoshitomo Nara Modern & Contemporary Art Day Sale

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2024 Auction Results

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#1. Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina, 2005

Christie’s New-York: 22 November 2024
Estimated: USD 800,000 – 1,200,000
USD 1,405,200
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina | Christie’s

REPEAT SALE

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 2 December 2021
Estimated: HKD 9,000,000 – 15,000,000
HKD 11,050,000 / USD 1,417,865
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina; Mariana; Suni; & Christina | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina, 2005
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper and cardboard, in four parts
Installation dimensions: 69.7 x 221 cm (27 1/2 x 87 inches) (approx.)
(i) Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina
Acrylic on paper
51.4 x 37.5 cm (20 1/4 x 14 3/4 inches)
(ii) Mariana
Acrylic and colored pencil on cardboard
69.7 x 37.5 cm (27 1/2 x 14 3/4 inches)
Signed with in Japanese, titled and dated ‘2005 MARIANA’ (on the reverse)
(iii) Suni
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
51.4 x 37.5 cm (20 1/4 x 14 3/4 inches)
Signed with in Japanese, titled and dated ‘2005 SUNI’ (on the reverse)
(iv) Christina
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
51.4 x 37.5 cm (20 1/4 x 14 3/4 inches)
Signed with in Japanese, titled and dated ‘2005 Christina’ (on the reverse)

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USD 1 million

---

#2. Fuck You (No. YNF2107), 1998

SBI Art Auction Tokyo: 27 January 2024
Estimated: JPY 60,000,000 – 90,000,000
JPY 132,250,000 / USD 892,435

RESULTS｜SBI Art Auction

YOSHITOMO NARA
Fuck You (No. YNF2107), 1998
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
84×59 cm (33 1/8 × 23 1/4 inches)
Signed and dated on the lower right

#3. The Night, 2003

Sotheby’s New-York: 14 May 2024
Estimated: USD 600,000 – 800,000
USD 698,500

The Night | Contemporary Day Auction | 2024 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
The Night, 2003
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
72.4 x 51.4 cm (28 1/2 x 20 1/4 inches)
Signed with the artist’s initials and dated 2003 (on the verso)

---

USD 500,000

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#4. Kills Fascists, 2012

Christie’s London: 9 March 2024
Estimated: GBP 150,000 – 200,000
GBP 352,800 / USD 447,350

Yoshitomo Nara (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Kills Fascists, 2012
Colored pencil on cardboard
31.7 x 31.7 cm (12 1/2 x 12 1/2 inches)
Signed with artist’s initials and dated ‘YN 12’ (on the reverse)

#5. Attack the Rotten World, 1995

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 26 September 2024
Estimated: HKD 1,500,000 – 2,500,000
HKD 2,520,000 / USD 323,928

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Attack the Rotten World | Christie’s (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Attack the Rotten World, 1995
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
33 x 48.3 cm (13×19 inches)
Signed with the artist’s signature and dated ”95′ (lower right)

#6. Untitled, 2007

Christie’s London: 27 June 2024
Estimated: GBP 120,000 – 180,000
GBP 252,000 / USD 319,536

https://www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-6492257

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled, 2007
Colored pencil on colored paper
41.9 x 29.6 cm (16 1/2 x 11 5/8 inches)
Signed in Japanese (on the reverse)

#7. Live for Moment, 2006

China Guardian Hong-Kong: 8 October 2024
Estimated: HKD 1,800,000 – 2,500,000
HKD 2,280,000 / USD 293,570

Auction | China Guardian (HK) Auctions Co., Ltd.

#8. Smiling Girl, 1993

#10. Untitled, 2007

Phillips Hong-Kong: 29 March 2024
Estimated: HKD 800,000 – 1,200,000
HKD 1,905,000 / USD 243,544

Yoshitomo Nara – New Now Hong Kong Lot 23 March 2024 | Phillips

#14. Sad Dog, 1998

Phillips Hong-Kong: 1 June 2024
Estimated: HKD 800,000 – 1,200,000
HKD 1,651,000 / USD 211,369

https://www.phillips.com/detail/yoshitomo-nara/HK010224/171

#15. Untitled, 1995

Phillips Hong-Kong: 29 March 2024
Estimated: HKD 700,000 – 900,000
HKD 1,651,000 / USD 211,071

Yoshitomo Nara – New Now Hong Kong Lot 39 March 2024 | Phillips

#19. Peace and Death, 2003

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 29 May 2024
Estimated: HKD 1,000,000 – 2,000,000
HKD 1,386,000 / USD 129,049

https://www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-6486315

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Peace and Death, 2003
Wax crayon, charcoal on envelope
33.6 x 26.8 cm (13 1/4 x 10 1/2 inches)

#20. Going Alone, 1998

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 29 May 2024
Estimated: HKD 900,000 – 1,500,000
HKD 1,008,000 / USD 129,049

https://www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-6486311

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Going Alone, 1998
Watercolor, colored pencil and graphite on paper
36 x 22.5 cm (14 1/4 x 8 7/8 inches)
Signed in Japanese, titled and dated ‘going alone 1998’ (lower edge)

#21. Soldier, 2003

Christie’s New-York: 1 October 2024
Estimated: USD 80,000 – 120,000
USD 100,800

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Soldier | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Soldier, 2003
Colored pencil on paper envelope
32.7 x 26 cm (12 7/8 x 10 1/4 inches)

---

USD 100,000

---

Untitled, 2002

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 9 November 2024
Estimated: HKD 800,000 – 1,500,000
HKD 756,000 / USD 97,275

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Untitled | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled, 2002
Crayon on paper
24.6 x 21 cm (9 3/4 x 8 1/4 inches)

Star Girl, 2007

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 9 November 2024
Estimated: HKD 480,000 – 680,000
HKD 529,200 / USD 68,095

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Star Girl | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Star Girl, 2007
Colored pencil on envelope
19.1 x 14 cm (7 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches)

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Lots Passed

---

Untitled, 2002

Christie’s New-York: 22 November 2024
Estimated: USD 150,000 – 200,000
PASSED

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Untitled | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled, 2002
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
36.2 x 25.5 cm (14 1/4 x 10 inches)
Signed with the artist’s initials, inscribed and dated ‘upper cut YN 2002’ (on the reverse)

Jelly?, 2019

Christie’s New-York: 22 November 2024
Estimated: USD 200,000 – 300,000
PASSED

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Jelly? | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Jelly?, 2019
Acrylic and colored pencil on cardboard
30.5 x 24.8 cm (12 x 9 3/4 inches)

---

2023 Auction Results

---

42 works on paper sold at auction in 2023 for a total turnover of USD 8,364,450.

With only 6 lots unsold, the sell-through rate is 88%. The highest price was achieved by Rock You sold at Sotheby’s Hong-Kong on 6 April 2023 for HKD 11,945,000 (USD 1,521,636). 24 lots sold over USD 100,000 for a total turnover of USD 7,659,078, amounting to 91.6% of the total turnover. The average price is USD 205,304.

WOP 2023 Top 6 Lots

2023 Auction Results

 

#1. Rock You, 2006

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 6 April 2023
Estimated: HKD 4,200,000 – 6,000,000
HKD 11,945,000 / USD 1,521,685

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | Rock You | Contemporary Day Auction | 2023 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Rock You, 2006
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
109.5 x 71.5 cm (43 1/8 x 28 1/8 inches)

#2. Untitled (7 drawings), 2004-2005

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 29 November 2023
Estimated: HKD 3,000,000 – 4,000,000
HKD 4,788,000 / USD 614,257

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled (7 drawings), 2004-2005
Overall: 77×130 cm (30 1/4 x 51 1/8 inches)

#3. Frog, 1998

Sotheby’s New-York: 29 September 2023
Estimated: USD 200,000 – 300,000
USD 609,600

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Frog, 1998
Acrylic on paper
36.2 x 35.6 cm (14 1/4 x 14 inches)
Titled and dated ’98 (on the verso)

#4. The Girl with a Knife, 1998

Christie’s London: 1 March 2023
Estimated: GBP 350,000 – 500,000
GBP 403,200 / USD 485,256

The Girl with a Knife (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
The Girl with a Knife, 1998
Acrylic, gouache, coloured pencil and ink on paper laid on paper
44.8 x 30.7 cm (17 5/8 x 12 1/8 inches)
Signed in Japanese and dated ’98’ (lower right)

#5. Mädchen mit den Winkerflaggen, 1996

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 24 September 2023
Estimated: HKD 1,800,000 – 2,800,000
HKD 3,528,000 / USD 451,133

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Mädchen mit den Winkerflaggen, 1996
Acrylic, watercolor and colored pencil on paper
32×24 cm (12 5/8 x 9 1/2 inches)
Signed with artist’s signature, titled and dated ‘Mädchen mit den winkerflaggen ‘96’ (bottom edge)

#6. God Save Us, 2012

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 27 July 2023
Estimated: HKD 1,500,000 – 3,000,000
HKD 2,667,000 / USD 341,822

God Save Us 上帝救救我們 | Contemporary Curated: Hong Kong | 2023 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
God Save Us, 2012
Colored pencil on cardboard
32×32 cm (12 5/8 x 12 5/8 inches)
Signed and dated 12 on the reverse

#7. Stay Good, 2000

Christie’s Shanghai: 23 September 2023
Estimated: CNY 1,800,000 – 2,500,000
CNY 2,268,000 / USD 310,770

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Stay Good, 2000
Acrylic and color pencils on paper
23 x 16.3 cm (9 x 6 3/8 inches)

#8. NO!, 2011

Phillips Hong-Kong: 31 March 2023
Estimated: HKD 1,800,000 – 2,800,000
HKD 2,413,000 / USD 307,388

Yoshitomo Nara – 20th Century & Conte… Lot 105 March 2023 | Phillips

#9. Reading is Learning, 1997

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 29 May 2023
Estimated: HKD 600,000 – 800,000
HKD 2,268,000 / USD 289,718

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Reading is Learning, 1997
Pencil and colored pencil on paper
83.7 x 58.8 cm (33 x 23 1/8 inches)
Signed with artist’s signature and dated ”97′ (lower right)

#10. Untitled, 2011

Christie’s New-York: 9 March 2023
Estimated: USD 80,000 – 120,000
USD 252,000

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled, 2011
Graphite on paper
63.5 x 50.2 cm (25 x 19 3/4 inches)
Signed and dated ‘Nara 11’ (on the reverse)

#12. Untitled, 2011

Sotheby’s London: 2 March 2023
Estimated: GBP 120,000 – 180,000
GBP 190,500 / USD 227,435

Untitled | Modern & Contemporary Day Auction | 2023 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Untitled, 2011
Colored pencil on paper
42 x 29.5 cm (16 1/2 x 11 5/8 inches)

#13. Untitled (LA 106.7 92.3 NYC), 2005

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 29 May 2023
Estimated: HKD 1,000,000 – 2,000,000
HKD 1,764,000 / USD 225,336

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled (LA 106.7 92.3 NYC), 2005
Colored pencil on paper
39×24 cm (15 3/8 x 9 1/2 inches)
Signed with artist’s signature and dated ‘2005’ (on the reverse)

#14. Maracas, 2012

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 6 October 2023
Estimated: HKD 1,200,000 – 2,400,000
HKD 1,651,000 / USD 210,812

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | Maracas 沙槌 | Contemporary Day Auction | 2023 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Maracas, 2012
Colored pencil on paper
31.7 x 22.5 cm (12 1/2 x 8 7/8 inches)
Titled in Japanese

#15. Untitled, 2005

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 6 April 2023
Estimated: HKD 1,000,000 – 2,000,000
HKD 1,651,000 / USD 210,322

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | Untitled 無題 | Contemporary Day Auction | 2023 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Untitled, 2005
Colored pencil on paper
33×24 cm (13 x 9 1/2 inches)
Signed and dated 2005 on the reverse

#16. Untitled, 2008

Christie’s London: 1 March 2023
Estimated: GBP 40,000 – 60,000
GBP 170,100 / USD 204,717

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled, 2008
Colored pencil on envelope
16 x 11.5 cm (6 1/4 x 4 1/2 inches)
signed with the artist’s initials and dated ‘YN 08’ (on the reverse)

#17. I Will Rock You!, 2007

Christie’s New-York: 10 November 2023
Estimated: USD 120,000 – 180,000
USD 176,400

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
I Will Rock You!, 2007
Colored pencil on paper envelope
33 x 23.8 cm (13 x 9 3/8 inches)

#19. Love! Somethin’, 1999

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 6 April 2023
Estimated: HKD 900,000 – 1,300,000
HKD 1,270,000 / USD 161,781

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | Love! Somethin’ 愛！某些事 | Contemporary Day Auction | 2023 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Love! Somethin’, 1999
Colored pencil on paper
29.7 x 21 cm (11 3/4 x 8 1/4 inches)
Signed and dated 99

#25. Portrait, 2002

Christie’s New-York: 18 May 2023
Estimated: USD 120,000 – 180,000
USD 126,000

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Portrait, 2002
Colored pencil and acrylic on envelope
28.2 x 25.4 cm (11 1/8 x 10 inches)
Signed, inscribed and dated ‘No Title Nara ’02’ (on the reverse)

#26. Untitled, 2004

Sotheby’s New-York: 9 March 2023
Estimated: USD 80,000 – 100,000
USD 107,950

Untitled | Contemporary Curated | 2023 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Untitled, 2004
Colored pencil on paper envelope
32.5 x 24.1 cm (12 3/4 x 9 5/8 inches)

#27. Fuck You, 2003

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 6 October 2023
Estimated: HKD 550,000 – 700,000
HKD 698,500 / USD 89,189

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | Fuck You 去你的 | Contemporary Day Auction | 2023 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Fuck You, 2003
Colored pencil on envelope
30.7 x 22.7 cm (12 1/8 x 9 inches)
Signed, titled and dated 2003 on the reverse

#28. My Birthday Last Year, circa 1997

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 24 September 2023
Estimated: HKD 300,000 – 500,000
HKD 604,800 / USD 77,337

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), My Birthday Last Year | Christie’s (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
My Birthday Last Year, circa 1997
Pencil and colored pencil on paper
27.3 x 21 cm (10 3/4 x 8 1/4 inches)

#29. Welcome to Fight, 1995

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 24 September 2023
Estimated: HKD 400,000 – 600,000
HKD 529,200 / USD 67,670

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Welcome to Fight | Christie’s (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Welcome to Fight, 1995
Pen and colored pencil on paper
29.6 x 42 cm (11 5/8 x 16 1/2 inches)
Signed with artist’s signature and dated ‘‘95’ (lower right)

 

 

 

 

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2022 Auction Results

---

58 lots sold at auction in 2022 for a total turnover of USD 15,876,842.

With 7 lots failing to sell, the sell-through rate is 89%. The highest price of 2022 was achieved at Sotheby’s in Hong-Kong on 27 April 2022, when Only Faces Appear in My Mind, a giant work on paper created in 2000 sold at a record HKD 24,575,000 (USD 3,131,849). 4 lots sold over USD 1 million, generating a cumulative turnover of USD 6,148,302, representing 38.7% of the total turnover for 2022.

2022 WoP Top 6 Lots

2022 WoP Top 20 Lots

#1. Only Faces Appear in My Mind, 2000

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 27 April 2022
Estimated: HKD 20,000,000 – 30,000,000
HKD 24,575,000 / USD 3,132,345

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | Only Faces Appear in My Mind 僅在我腦海中出現的臉孔 | Contemporary Evening Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Only Faces Appear in My Mind, 2000
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
201.5 x 203.5 cm (79 3/8 x 80 1/8 inches)

#2. Sorry, Just Couldn’t Draw Left Eye!, 2003

Sotheby’s New-York: 20 May 2022
Estimated: USD 600,000 – 800,000
USD 1,008,000

Sorry, Just Couldn’t Draw Left Eye! | Contemporary Day Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Sorry, Just Couldn’t Draw Left Eye!, 2003
Acrylic, pastel, graphite, paper collage and tape on paper
137×100 cm (54 x 39 1/4 inches)
Signed, titled and dated 2003 (on the verso)

#3. Standing Alone, 2003

Sotheby’s New-York: 11 March 2022
Estimated: USD 300,000 – 400,000
USD 1,008,000

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Standing Alone, 2003
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
51.4 x 36.2 cm (20 1/4 x 14 1/4 inches)

#4. Girl with a Knife, 1999

Christie’s London: 13 October 2022
Estimated: GBP 250,000 – 350,000
GBP 882,000 / USD 1,000,453

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Girl with a Knife, 1999
Acrylic, graphite, colored pencil and crayon on paper
51×36 cm (20 1/8 x 14 1/8 inches)
Signed in Japanese, titled and dated ‘Girl with a knife 99’ (on the reverse)

#5. Untitled, 1997

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 27 May 2022
Estimated: HKD 4,000,000 – 6,000,000
HKD 5,670,000 / USD 722,339

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled, 1997
Gouache, pastel and pencil on paper
70×100 cm (27 1/2 x 39 3/8 inches)
Signed with artist’s signature and dated ‘’97’ (lower right)

#6. Untitled, 2006

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 1 December 2022
Estimated: HKD 1,500,000 – 2,500,000
HKD 5,040,000 / USD 647,998

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled, 2006
Colored pencil on paper
31.5 x 24 cm (12 3/8 x 9 1/2 inches)
signed with artist’s signature and dated ‘06′ (on the reverse)

#7. Lone Star, 2012

Christie’s online: 21 January 2022
Estimated: HKD 1,800,000 – 2,800,000
HKD 3,750,000 / USD 481,596

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Lone Star | Christie’s (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Lone Star, 2012
Colored pencil on cardboard
31.5 x 31.5 cm (12 3/8 x 12 3/8 inches)
Signed with artist’s signature and dated ‘12 (on the reverse)

 

#9. Dancing Alone, 2003

Sotheby’s New-York: 11 March 2022
Estimated: USD 200,000 – 300,000
USD 441,000

Dancing Alone | Contemporary Curated | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Dancing Alone, 2003
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
51.4 x 36.2 cm (20 1/4 x 14 1/4 inches)

#11. I’m Sucked Into An Abyss, 2006

Sotheby’s New-York: 11 March 2022
Estimated: USD 150,000 – 250,000
USD 277,200

I’m Sucked Into An Abyss | Contemporary Curated | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
I’m Sucked Into An Abyss, 2006
Colored pencil on paper
42 x 29.7 cm (16 1/2 x 11 5/8 inches)

#14. Slash with a Knife, 1998

Christie’s New-York: 13 May 2022
Estimated: USD 100,000 – 150,000
USD 239,400

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Slash with a Knife, 1998
Colored pencil on paper
27.9 x 20.3 cm (11×8 inches)
Signed in Japanese and dated ”98′ (on the reverse)

#15. Last Chance, 2012

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 15 December 2022
Estimated: HKD 1,200,000 – 2,000,000
HKD 1,764,000 / USD 226,889

Last Chance | 最後機會 | Modern and Contemporary Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Last Chance, 2012
Colored pencil on corrugated board
32×32 cm (12 5/8 x 12 5/8 inches)
Titled in Japanese; signed and dated 2012 on the reverse

#19. Untitled (246 On the Motorway), 2015

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 28 April 2022
Estimated: HKD 800,000 – 1,500,000
HKD 1,701,000 / USD 216,787

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | Untitled (246 On the Motorway) 無題(246在高速公路上) | Contemporary Day Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Untitled (246 On the Motorway), 2015
Color pencil on envelope
32.5 x 23.5 cm (12 3/4 x 9 1/4 inches)

#20. Untitled, 2004

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 28 April 2022
Estimated: HKD 700,000 – 1,000,000
HKD 1,575,000 / USD 200,729

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | Untitled 無題 | Contemporary Day Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Untitled, 2004
Colored pencil on paper
32×24 cm (12 5/8 x 9 1/2 inches)

#21. Untitled (Who Is The Killer), 2004

Christie’s New-York: 18 November 2022
Estimated: USD 50,000 – 70,000
USD 189,000

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled (Who Is The Killer), 2004
Colored pencil on envelope
22.2 x 15.2 cm (8 3/4 x 6 inches)
Signed in Japanese (on the reverse)

#22. Sprout in Hand, 2013

Christie’s New-York: 13 May 2022
Estimated: USD 80,000 – 120,000
USD 189,000

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Sprout in Hand, 2013
Colored pencil on envelope
34.3 x 24.1 cm (13 1/2 x 9 1/2 inches)
Signed in Japanese, titled and dated ‘2013 sprout in hand’ (on the reverse)

#23. Lone Star, 2013

Christie’s New-York: 13 May 2022
Estimated: USD 100,000 – 150,000
USD 189,000

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Lone Star, 2013
Colored pencil on paper
38.1 x 26.7 cm (15 x 10 1/2 inches)
Signed in Japanese, titled and dated ‘2013 Lone Star’ (on the reverse)

#24. Untitled, 2003

Christie’s London: 14 October 2022
Estimated: GBP 60,000 – 80,000
GBP 163,800 / USD 183,632

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled, 2003
Colored pencil on envelope
34.6 x 24.2 cm (13 5/8 x 9 1/4 inches)

#27. Untitled (Bombing), 2004

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 28 April 2022
Estimated: HKD 500,000 – 700,000
HKD 1,386,000 / USD 176,641

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | Untitled (Bombing) 無題（轟炸） | Contemporary Day Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Untitled (Bombing), 2004
Color pencil on envelope
23×12 cm (9 x 4 3/4 inches)
Signed and dated 04 on the reverse

#29. Untitled (Feet on Head), 2003

Sotheby’s New-York: 30 September 2022
Estimated: USD 100,000 – 150,000
USD 163,800

Untitled (Feet on Head) | Contemporary Curated | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Untitled (Feet on Head), 2003
Colored pencil on envelope
29.2 x 21.6 cm (11 1/2 x 8 1/2 inches)

#30. World is Yours, 2004

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 28 April 2022
Estimated: HKD 700,000 – 1,000,000
HKD 1,260,000 / USD 160,583

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | World is Yours 世界是你的 | Contemporary Day Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

 

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
World is Yours, 2004
Colored pencil on paper
32×24 cm (12 5/8 x 9 1/2 inches)

#33. Untitled, 1997

Christie’s New-York: 13 May 2022
Estimated: USD 40,000 – 60,000
USD 138,600

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled, 1997
Pen and colored pencil on paper
22.9 x 15.2 cm (9×6 inches)
Signed in Japanese and dated ‘’97’ (upper right); inscribed ‘last kamikaze’ (lower right)

#34. Untitled, 2003

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 6 October 2023
Estimated: HKD 500,000 – 700,000
HKD 1,071,000 / USD 136,434

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | Untitled 無題 | Contemporary Day Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Untitled, 2003
Colored pencil on paper
21.5 x 31.4 cm (8 1/2 x 12 3/8 inches)

 

 

 

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Record Breakers

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Only Faces Appear in My Mind, 2000

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 27 April 2022
Estimated: HKD 20,000,000 – 30,000,000
HKD 24,575,000 / USD 3,132,346
WORK ON PAPER

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | Only Faces Appear in My Mind 僅在我腦海中出現的臉孔 | Contemporary Evening Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Only Faces Appear in My Mind, 2000
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
201.5 x 203.5 cm (79 3/8 x 80 1/8 inches)

Only Faces Appear in My Mind is an unrivalled example of Yoshitomo Nara’s works on paper, created during one of the most cherished periods of the artist’s career in 2000, the year of his return to Japan from Germany. A rare work in terms of its impressive size and the uncommon pig-tail motif, Only Faces Appear in My Mind is an exceptional paperwork to make its auction debut. Embodying Nara’s Neo Pop aesthetic that eschews traditional distinctions between high art and popular culture, the artist’s choice of paper as the surface for this work allows for unmatched experimentation and artistic expression, granting Nara more spontaneity and freedom in his visual language.

Unusual in his paintings of mischievous little girls, Nara writes “ONLY FACES APPEAR IN MY MIND” in the hair of the child, an intriguing visual element that not only adds textural depth but also demands the viewer’s attention in deciphering its meaning. Further, Only Faces Appear in My Mind embodies the spirit of punk rebellion that permeates Nara’s oeuvre, a fantastic mix of acrylic and colour pencil with smudges and drips enhancing the energy and uniqueness of the work. Brazen and rebellious, the enlarged head of the little girl takes up the entirety of the image, staring unflinchingly at the viewer with Nara’s iconic triangular eyes. Testament to the significance of the work, Only Faces Appear in My Mind was exhibited alongside another large-scale paperwork, Young Mother (2000), at Takashi Murakami’s landmark exhibition Superflat at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles in 2001, a seminal survey of Japanese contemporary art on the international stage.

Grinning naughtily with menacing triangular eyes, Nara’s heroine engages the viewer in a silent dialogue, who is at once struck by her vulnerable, cute features and intrigued by her headstrong countenance. Exuding an arresting vigor and vitality, Only Faces Appear in My Mind is a superlative paperwork to come to market, of the kind that is not often seen at auction. The work combines the spontaneity and dynamism of Nara’s paperworks with the luminosity and chromatic layering of his paintings, featuring his archetypal motif of a large headed little girl set against a monochrome background, in a manner that is arguably unmatched in its embodiment of his Neo Pop aesthetic and evocation of his Punk sensibility.

Rock You, 2006

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 6 April 2023
Estimated: HKD 4,200,000 – 6,000,000
HKD 11,945,000 / USD 1,521,685
WORK ON PAPER

Yoshitomo Nara 奈良美智 | Rock You | Contemporary Day Auction | 2023 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Rock You, 2006
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
109.5 x 71.5 cm (43 1/8 x 28 1/8 inches)

The bold illustration of Japanese painter Yoshitomo Nara’s iconic young rebels and boundary-pushing text, Rock You from 2006 is an audacious illustration of the power that comes with marching to your own beat. Embodying Nara’s characteristic large-headed girls with emphatically large eyes and ambiguous emotional depths, Rock You brings together a conglomeration of the artist’s distinctive influences; rock and punk music, children’s books, traditional Japanese figurative works and the paintings of the Italian Renaissance. Much of the artist’s oeuvre depicts children in various emotional states to explore themes of isolation, rebellion and spirituality. Extensively exhibited, the mischievous, empathetic and whimsical charm of Rock You weaves together Nara’s distinctive humor and unconventional portraiture into a powerfully evocative work, one which is a consummate example of the artist’s celebrated works on paper.

THE PRESENT WORK EXHIBITED IN THE LONDON MAYFAIR HOUSE AT STEPHEN FRIEDMAN GALLERY, 2006

Rock You was exhibited as part of the extensive and critically acclaimed set of exhibitions between Nara and the design group graf. Beginning in 2003, this collaboration built massive installations of wooden houses with ready-made materials like driftwood and found objects. The interior of these houses were inspired by the artist’s studios in Japan, a kind of nomadic home for Nara at an exciting time in his career. The present work was completed in 2005 and dated 2006, as result of this collaborative series of exhibitions which culminated at the Yokohama Triennial in 2005, and the retrospective at Yoshii Brick Brewhouse, Yoshitomo Nara + graf, A to Z in 2006. Their most ambitious project, A to Z saw a series of 26 house installed, each responding to the physical space of the exhibition venue or the local culture. The present work was exhibited within the Yokohama Seaside Tenement house within Nara’s miniature city, followed by the London Mayfair house at the Stephen Friedman Gallery in London in 2006. Encouraging visual and creative exchange across geographic boundaries, Rock You engages in an honest dialogue with the viewer. By showing works like the present on the walls amongst the artist’s creative paraphernalia, Nara and Graf departed from the conventional method of exhibiting art, opening up a radical dimension to the relationship between artist and audience, reviving a form of narrative art. Whilst a considerably smaller sketch of the present work was displayed in another wooden house, the expansive size of the present work and Nara’s expert blending of various mediums takes the riotous message of Rock You to new depths.

THE PRESENT WORK, EXHIBITED IN THE YOKOHAMA TENEMENT HOUSE AT THE YOKOHAMA TRIENNALE, 2005

Within Rock You, a small girl with a disproportionately large head and blazing eyes stares out towards the viewer. Wearing a shapeless black dress, the figure’s orange hair is cut shaggily across her forehead, and a simple line represents her mischievous and unspeaking mouth. Yet, plastered in bold red across her chest are the words “ROCK YOU”, speaking loud and clear. Nara’s infamous “Rock You” billboard works conducted on wood and signboard were also displayed during the house installations, and embody the artist’s enduring love of punk and rock music. As a young artist in the 1980s, Nara gravitated toward the anti-establishment ethos of punk music, with lyrics from bands like The Clash and the Sex Pistols appearing throughout his artwork, the artist often imbuing his figures with a sense of riotous intensity. Growing up in rural Japan, album covers provided Nara with an introduction to visual art that would go on to inform much of his work. Evidenced in the frequent appearance of fragments of punk and rock lyrics in his work and their titles since the 1980s, Nara identified with the emotional intensity and anti-establishment spirit of punk and New Wave. Phrases like “I don’t give a fuck about everything” and “1.2.3.4 Blitzkrieg Bop” invoke this sensibility despite Nara’s putatively cute subjects. For Nara, music is a vital component of both his working practice and the emotive spirit behind his art, a relationship that can be felt in the artist’s major retrospective held at Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 2020, in which an entire room was dedicated to his collection of over 350 vinyl records. The youthful jubilance and rebellious attitude evoked in Nara’s adolescence by rock and roll still permeates his artistic production, taking center stage in Rock You.

Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina, 2005

Christie’s New-York: 22 November 2024
Estimated: USD 800,000 – 1,200,000
USD 1,405,200
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina | Christie’s

REPEAT SALE

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 2 December 2021
Estimated: HKD 9,000,000 – 15,000,000
HKD 11,050,000 / USD 1,417,865
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina; Mariana; Suni; & Christina | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina, 2005
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper and cardboard, in four parts
Installation dimensions: 69.7 x 221 cm (27 1/2 x 87 inches) (approx.)
(i) Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina
Acrylic on paper
51.4 x 37.5 cm (20 1/4 x 14 3/4 inches)
(ii) Mariana
Acrylic and colored pencil on cardboard
69.7 x 37.5 cm (27 1/2 x 14 3/4 inches)
Signed with in Japanese, titled and dated ‘2005 MARIANA’ (on the reverse)
(iii) Suni
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
51.4 x 37.5 cm (20 1/4 x 14 3/4 inches)
Signed with in Japanese, titled and dated ‘2005 SUNI’ (on the reverse)
(iv) Christina
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
51.4 x 37.5 cm (20 1/4 x 14 3/4 inches)
Signed with in Japanese, titled and dated ‘2005 Christina’ (on the reverse)

In Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina, Yoshitomo Nara presents three poignant portraits of his most beloved subject, embodying a nuanced exploration of childhood and innocence. Diverging from his more typical paper works, often drafted in quick colored pencil on scrap papers and envelopes, the portraits which form the present lot exhibit an extraordinary richness in tonal detail, with the girls’ entrancing eyes shimmering with a depth that invites close examination. The intricate textures and delicate brushstrokes enhance the tenderness of the images, resulting in works that resonate with the emotional complexity often found in his larger canvas paintings.

Nara, a prominent figure in contemporary art, emerged from the Japanese postwar milieu, where he experienced the duality of scarcity and resourcefulness. Paper, in particular, became an intimate and vital medium for him—both precious and personal. Growing up in an environment where materials were limited, he often repurposed discarded items, fostering a creative practice deeply rooted in his childhood experiences. This reliance on paper not only shaped his artistic evolution but also allowed him to channel the complexities of his formative years into his work. The artist’s oeuvre is characterized by its playful yet haunting representations of childlike figures, often infused with a sense of rebellion against societal norms. Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina exemplifies the alluring ambiguity for which Nara is renowned, offering a rich narrative that transitions from the innocence of childhood to the complexities of adolescence. The title “Missing” carries multifaceted implications, simultaneously invoking loss, nostalgia, and rebellion, and prompting viewers to engage with the work from multiple perspectives.

While some interpretations may frame the paintings as lamentations for the absent girls, the ambiguity invites a more nuanced reading, suggesting a playful engagement with the concept of “missing.” An initial interpretation evokes sadness for lost or kidnapped girls, but beneath the surface lies an interpretation that is perhaps more in line with the larger ethos of Nara’s body of work. Could it be the girls are missing on their own accord? Instead of victims, in this context the girls transform into rebellious and spirited runaways, independent from and unaffected by the adults they leave behind. Finally, a more abstract interpretation highlights an overall nostalgia for childhood, emphasizing the wonder and innocence of youth that many adults often overlook. Together, these interpretations create a complex tapestry of emotions, reflecting the multifaceted nature of memory itself.
“Rather than merely offering the work for the viewers to see face-on, I want to trigger their imaginations. This way, each individual can see my work with his or her own unique, imaginative mind. People with imaginative minds can perhaps see something more than I can.” 

Ultimately, Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina encourages a reflective engagement with the viewer’s own experiences of growth and maturity distilled through Nara’s playful vision. Through this exploration, Nara invites us to reconsider the values we place on innocence and maturity, as well as the attributes and capacities we expect from children, often neglecting the lived experiences and vast interior worlds of our youth. The layered interpretations existing within Missing Mariana, Suni, Christina cleverly illuminate that which is at the core of Nara’s practice.

Greeting for Birds (set of 96), 2006

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 2 April 2017
Estimated: HKD 5,500,000 – 7,000,000
HKD 9,700,000 / USD 1,248,225
WORK ON PAPER

(#1053) Nara Yoshitomo

YOSHITOMO NARA
Greeting for Birds (set of 96), 2006
Colored pencil on paper
Each: 30×42 cm (11-3/4 x 16-1/2 inches)
Signed in Japanese and dated 2006 on the reverse of the first page
This work is accompanied with an original wooden box

Greeting for Birds (set of 96) arose out of a singular cross-cultural endeavor: one between Japanese film director and animator Takahata Isao, the era-defining Japanese contemporary artist Nara Yoshitomo, and the poetry of French poet and screenwriter Prévert. In 2004, when Takahata was invited to pen an introductory essay for an audio CD album of Prévert’s poetry, he found himself inadvertently reminded of Nara’s iconic drawings. For Takahata, the simple, unpretentious purity of the French poet’s idealism and child-like sentiments found perfect resonance in Nara’s visual aesthetic, which likewise shone light, empathy and tender affection on young children and little animals—the weaker yet chaste creatures of the world. Takahata thus initiated the project of a combined collection of Prévert’s poems, translated to Japanese and accompanied by Nara illustrations. Takahata personally picked certain Nara works to match each poem, and Nara later contributed to the project by replacing some of the selections and producing fresh illustrations for the book. The collection was published and printed in 2006; prior to this, Nara personally reproduced each page of the book, illustration plus poem, into a set of 96 drawings on paper, and the entire set was exhibited at the Taipei Museum of Contemporary Art in 2004.

The present lot, titled after Prévert’s favoured bird motif, is thus an enchanting fusion of art and poetry that represents a transnational reverberation of sentiment and spirit. Artist and poet both articulate an instantly evocative language of poignant vulnerability and purity, proclaiming personal and universal feelings of nostalgia, melancholy and hopeful idealism. Born in 1959 to emotionally distant workaholic parents in post-war Japan, and growing up as the youngest of three sons by a drastic age difference, Nara’s childhood was for the most part spent alone. Transforming his feelings into art, Nara immortalized his feelings in striking portraits of young solitary children set against simple bare backgrounds, building a distinctive and universally resonant oeuvre that quickly gained a worldwide following. While Nara’s style on canvas evolved progressively throughout the years, his drawings on paper always retained an undiminished freshness and encompassed styles, genres and motifs from all periods. Featuring a comprehensive set of drawings chosen and produced specifically as a collection, Greeting for Birds (set of 96) is a rare collectible that constitutes a captivating summation of the artist’s entire epochal career.

PEACE ON YOUR FEET, 2004

Christie’s Hong-Kong: 2 December 2020
Estimated: HKD 7,000,000 – 9,000,000
HKD 9,250,000 / USD 1,193,280
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), PEACE ON YOUR FEET | Christie’s

REPEAT SALE

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 5 October 2015
Estimated: HKD 2,200,000 – 3,000,000
HKD 3,080,000 / USD 397,410
WORK ON PAPER

Results for “nara peace on your feet”

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
PEACE ON YOUR FEET, 2004
Colored pencil and acrylic on paper
132.4 x 115.9 cm (52-1/8 x 45-5/8 inches)
Signed with artist’s signature, dated ‘2004’ (on the reverse)

For Yoshitomo Nara, works on paper are a crucial medium through which he conveys his creativity and most intimate emotions. In the 1980s when he was studying at the Aichi Prefectural University of the Arts, he lived by himself in a mobile home surrounded by the forest where he blasted music every day. He would pick up any scrap pieces of paper that were lying around and use them to record his inspiration. He would write down lyrics from the music that he was listening to, and any rebellious manifestos that came to mind. He recalled, “Thinking back, I think it was like writing a pictorial diary. I drew things and events that moved me every day, and this process made me feel that every day was meaningful.”

To most contemporary artists, the oil painting medium is held in higher regard than works on paper. Yet, this hierarchy does not apply to Yoshitomo Nara’s works. On the contrary, his diverse use of media is a testament to the holistic approach of his artistic pursuit. Nara utilises any surface to draw, including envelopes, graph paper, and any scrap materials he can find. After spending 12 years abroad in Germany, he returned to his native country Japan. Completed in 2004, Peace on Your Feet is a work that Nara that executed four years after his return. It is an accomplished piece with a high degree of finish that belongs to Nara’s later and more mature period. Most of the artist’s signature elements can be found in this work — the distinctly rendered child in full portrait, the little vampire fangs, the peace sign, the immaculate lawn in the background, as well as the vividly coloured red text at the bottom. All the most iconic symbols in Nara’s visual language converge in this work.

The child is modelled in a Nara-esque style is instantly recognisable. Tracing back to the origin of Nara’s iconic characters, many believe that they share the same DNA as Japanese manga and anime. However, the artist explained that these genres contribute very little to the conception of his figures. In fact, the visual language of E-hon, the Japanese picture book genre that was popular during the Edo-Meiji era, influenced him stylistically in a much more profound way — this genre excels at using concise imageries to tell sophisticated narratives. In addition, this work utilises the self-expression principle of Neo-expressionism. Nara’s clean and economic use of lines succinctly completes the character modelling of the little girl. The influence from Japanese Ukiyo-E figure depiction is apparent here. Nara’s exceptional drawing technique is thoroughly demonstrated in his treatment of the little girl’s eyes. He expounded, “If you have studied traditional painting, it should be obvious to you that I am using all the techniques of the masters”. From the flat composition and exaggerated facial features in classic Japanese art, to the choice of palette of Renaissance masters like Giotto and Piero della Francesca, Nara poured over these different styles of representation in his youth with the most stringent and rigorous attitude.

The fundamental contradiction in Nara’s depiction of children is that the expressions of defiance on their faces are very much incongruent with their age and appearances. Seemingly innocent and adorable, the complexity of these children’s thoughts can rival that of the adult. This conflict is best exemplified in this work: the expression on the child’s face is full of hubris as she provocatively raises her hand in a peace sign. This attitude subverts the conventional image of the wide-eyed, innocent child. As a result, this reversal of roles between the adult and the child charges this work visually with a sense of menace and intimidation. Under the guise of warm pastel tones is the artist’s profound reflection on history, human nature, and its relationship with the world. The text in red declares a message of peace, and behind it the little girl stand on a patch of grass. As a symbol of the ecosystem, Nara’s message seems to extend to the issue of environmental conservation.

All artistic movements eventually fade into history, style becomes outdated, and forms obsolete. Only emotions can stand the test of time. For this reason, works that resonate with the human heart across temporal and geographical boundaries are inevitably ones that convey genuine emotions. Yoshitomo Nara resolutely remains true to himself — a principle that he applies both to his life and his artistic practice. As one of the most influential Japanese artists in the International contemporary art arena, his works are widely collected by some of the most esteemed art institutions in the world — they include the Art Institute of Chicago and the Museum of Modern Art in the United States, the British Museum in the United Kingdom, Aomori Museum of Art in Japan, and the Neues Museum in Germany.

Standing Alone, 2003

Sotheby’s New-York: 11 March 2022
Estimated: USD 300,000 – 400,000
USD 1,008,000
WORK ON PAPER

Standing Alone | Contemporary Curated | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Standing Alone, 2003
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
51.4 x 36.2 cm (20 1/4 x 14 1/4 inches)

Instigating an expansive discourse around themes of innocence, Yoshitomo Nara’s oeuvre not only harnesses an address that is both highly personal and universally relatable, but also activates a study on the canon of the gaze through the infinitely repeated iterations of his doe-eyed young girls. In the very best examples of Nara’s oeuvre, it is the figure’s eyes that form the crux of subtle narratives, acting as the psychological centers of engagement. Executed in 2003, Standing Alone displays to flawless perfection the most distinctive features of Nara’s mature works – a female figure in a tranquil or contemplative state with strikingly lustrous eyes, here in a singular shade of chartreuse. The subject’s electric and magnetic gaze is arresting yet ambiguous; we are held captive, spellbound and transfixed, yet never certain whether her scrutiny is adulatory or accusatory, mischievous or wise, stern or benign. Aided by delicately virtuous brushwork and texture’s, Standing Alone exemplifies Nara’s mature, more meditative and introspective aesthetic, underscored by deeper contemplations on the self and the world. Within the past year alone, there have been three major exhibitions of Nara’s work, with shows at Dallas Contemporary and the Kuandu Museum of Fine Arts in Taipei, as well as the artist’s first international retrospective which took place at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art to great acclaim.

© PETER DOIG. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, DACS 2022. PHOTO CREDIT: WALKER ART GALLERY

During the period in which this work was executed, Nara’s monochromatic backgrounds became reductive and highly distinctive – his brushstrokes increasingly painterly and rendered with a softer palette and gentle depth. Through masterful layering and chromatic hues, the composition of Standing Alone conveys an ambiguous vacuity when juxtaposed against the solitary figure, an allegory for the self, situated within a vast, indifferent, and alienating world. What initially feels to resemble a pastel wash reveals itself to be born of several coats of semi-translucent acrylic that are slowly built upon in successive layers, reminiscent of a technique learned from his tutor, the renowed artist Peter Doig, at the Kunstakademie Dusseldorf.

Sorry, Just Couldn’t Draw Left Eye!, 2003

Sotheby’s New-York: 20 May 2022
Estimated: USD 600,000 – 800,000
USD 1,008,000
WORK ON PAPER

Sorry, Just Couldn’t Draw Left Eye! | Contemporary Day Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Sorry, Just Couldn’t Draw Left Eye!, 2003
Acrylic, pastel, graphite, paper collage and tape on paper
137×100 cm (54 x 39 1/4 inches)
Signed, titled and dated 2003 (on the verso)

Sorry, Just Couldn’t Draw Left Eye! from 2003, displays the artist’s signature arresting visual power that harnesses the transcendent dynamism of the innocent, serene and doe-eyed gaze of the small girl. Demonstrating Nara’s utter mastery over material, the luscious green eye, delicate eye patch and vibrant torso are enhanced by the softly paled yellow and brown in the young girl’s profile. Wholly enchanting, the present work is a window into the very soul of the child within each viewer.

A twenty year long fascination for Nara, the small girl in the present work is the utter embodiment of the artist’s endless pursuit and exploration of themes of solitary, rebellion and innocence that define the very essence of childhood. Following Nara’s relocation from Germany’s Kunstakademie Düsseldorf in 1988 and homecoming to Japan in 2000, Sorry, Just Couldn’t Draw Left Eye!represents a profoundly subtle tonal shift in his artistic practice. The rosy cheeks, softened gaze, gentle smile and playful hair of the small girl in Sorry, Just Couldn’t Draw Left Eye! showcase Nara’s delicate delineation of lines and sweetening of his palette, found only in the most prized examples from his mature body of work. Indeed, the inclusion of Sorry, Just Couldn’t Draw Left Eye! in the celebrated Japan Pop exhibition at the Helsinki City Art Museum illustrates Nara’s limitless and enduring appeal to global audiences. Uncontested as Japan’s most internationally acclaimed painter today, Yoshitomo Nara’s Sorry, Just Couldn’t Draw Left Eye! captures global audiences with its dreamlike examination of the surreal nature of childhood, its limitless emotions and desires, denoted across the impressively scaled surface of the subject work.

Girl with a Knife, 1999

Christie’s London: 13 October 2022
Estimated: GBP 250,000 – 350,000
GBP 882,000 / USD 1,000,455
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959) (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Girl with a Knife, 1999
Acrylic, graphite, colored pencil and crayon on paper
51×36 cm (20 1/8 x 14 1/8 inches)
Signed in Japanese, titled and dated ‘Girl with a knife 99’ (on the reverse)

Executed in 1999, and acquired that year, Girl with a Knife is a bold iteration of one of Yoshitomo Nara’s most important motifs. Upon a pale ground, a little girl stands with a blade in her hand, her bright green eyes aglow with an almost neon luminescence. Created a pivotal moment in his early career, shortly before he returned from Cologne to his native Japan, the work captures the graphic, punk-inspired aesthetic that would propel him to fame over the next few years. His cast of children, with distinctive exaggerated features, would become global icons, often styled as tiny rebels carrying miniature weapons. The knife, in particular, would become a key image for Nara, after featuring in his seminal 1991 painting The Girl with the Knife in her Hand (promised gift to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art). Exquisitely rendered in pencil, crayon and acrylic, the present work is a sumptuous example of his drawings: a fundamental strand of his practice, and which formed a major part of his first international touring retrospective this year. The show completed its second leg at the Yuz Museum, Shanghai, this September, marking Nara’s solo debut in mainland China.

Nara grew up as a ‘latchkey kid’ in post-war rural Japan, and was frequently left to his own devices as a child. Lost in the company of his own imagination, he absorbed the influx of Western culture that was sweeping the nation at the time: from Warner Brothers cartoons and Walt Disney films to European fairy tales and American comics. Often dialling in to the American military base radio station, he would immerse himself in punk and rock-and-roll music, imbibing a spirit of subversive rebellion that would later find expression in his characters. Though frequently wielding guns, chainsaws and other instruments of destruction, Nara has explained that his subjects are not intended to be aggressive. ‘Look at them, they are so small, like toys’, he has said of his knives. ‘Do you think they could fight with those? I don’t think so. Rather, I kind of see the children among other, bigger, bad people all around them, who are holding bigger knives’ (Y. Nara, quoted in ‘Why does Yoshitomo Nara’s girl have a knife in her hand?’, www.phaidon.com). Girl with a Knife, in this regard, may be seen to relate to the work of artists such as Andy Warhol and Banksy, who similarly combined graphic wit with deeper social commentary. Drawing upon the Japanese kawaii (‘cute’) subculture that elsewhere inspired Takashi Murakami, his protagonists became increasingly less caricatured, with smaller heads, gentler outlines and pastel-toned palettes. While the present work bears all the hallmarks of this trajectory, the girl’s eyes continue to emit a piercing green tone that almost seems to glow in the dark. The knife in her hand might almost be a pencil or paintbrush, ready—like Nara’s own—to wield its influence upon the world.

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Other Drawings

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Cold Side, 1995

Childlike, caricatured and clothed in a simplistic, luminous yellow dress, Yoshitomo Nara’s Cold Side is constructed from his well-established trope of the cartoonish figure as a harbinger of violence. Almost signed in blood red, the title slides towards the figure, hovering ominously and starkly against the white background. These recognizable characters which portentously smirk, and sneer have secured Nara’s reputation, whilst critical reception varies from loneliness to an exposure of humanity’s capacity for violence.  As the work’s title suggests, the viewer is given the ‘cold side’ or ‘cold shoulder’ by Nara’s character. The work’s energy is concentrated to its right side, from the turning stance of the figure to the sloping lettering, the arm and gun. It remains ambiguous as to who or what is being targeted, or where the insidious eyes are trained towards. Some comment on Nara’s works as a representation of ‘loneliness and anger but also forgiveness, indicating the simultaneously destructive and restorative power of innocence’. However, Nara remains committed to exposing the violent unpredictability of humanity which bubbles beneath the surface. By harnessing the seemingly innocent female figure, Nara’s composition becomes at once unnerving and universal, where the destructive qualities of humanity are felt in full force.

Frog, 1998

Christie’s London: 16 October 2025
Estimated: GBP 300,000 – 500,000
GBP 444,500 / USD 595,630
WORK ON PAPER

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Frog | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Frog, 1998
Acrylic on paper
36×35 cm (14 1/8 x 13 3/4 inches)
Signed in Japanese, titled and dated ‘FROG 98’ (on the reverse)

Equal parts whimsical and uncanny, Frog (1998) is an outstanding example of Yoshitomo Nara’s celebrated and hugely distinctive big-headed girls, the cornerstone of an almost four-decades-long artistic practice. It is a close cousin of major paintings such as Be Happy (1995), as well as many works that featured this year at Nara’s blockbuster retrospective at London’s Hayward Gallery. Frog is a delicately-wrought acrylic painting of a young girl with an oversized head and simple, almost cartoon-like features. Her wide-set green eyes and flat nose bear a mild resemblance to the titular amphibian, while her facial expression suggests malcontent, almost as if she is turning to accuse the viewer. Does this child know something that we do not? An aura of menace hovers in uneasy juxtaposition with her youthful vulnerability. The character exists in an ambiguous field of soft pink.

Frog dates from Nara’s Cologne period. He had moved to Germany in 1988 to study at the prestigious Kunstakademie Düsseldorf under the neo-expressionist painter A. R. Penck, who encouraged Nara to adopt a pared-back style. This advice inspired a process of simplification which led Nara to his signature big-headed characters. These works debuted at the Kunstakademie’s annual student show in 1992 and quickly became a success in Nara’s native Japan. In 1998, his international profile grew with his first US solo exhibition at the Institute of Visual Arts Milwaukee and a role as visiting professor at the University of Los Angeles, where he lived with fellow Japanese artist Takashi Murakami. At the same time his brushwork became more delicate and he began working in a soft, diaphanous palette, leaving behind the cartoonish thick black lines that had characterized his earlier figures.

Katsushika Hokusai, Kingfisher, Irises and Pinks, 1834. Private Collection. Digital Image: The Stapleton Collection / Bridgeman Images.

For all the picture-book clarity of Nara’s aesthetic, it exists in close dialogue with the history of art. Frog is executed in tranquil pastel hues that evoke the tempera favored by early Italian Renaissance artists. Nara has spoken about his interest in these old masters.

“I especially love the translucent colours of Giotto and Piero della Francesca. The surface texture of fresco painting contains a space that I can enter easily.”

It also draws on Japanese culture. The blush-hued empty space around Frog’s main figure is redolent of that found in Edo era ukiyo-e woodblock prints.

Piero del Pollaiolo, Profile Portrait of a Young Woman, circa 1465. Gemäldegalerie – Staatliche Museen zu Berlin. Digital Image: © 2025 Scala, Florence/bpk, Bildagentur fuer Kunst, Kultur und Geschichte, Berlin/ / Jörg P. Anders.

The cuteness of Nara’s protagonists engages with Japan’s contemporary kawaii phenomenon, though the artist imbues his figures with an emotional complexity largely absent in childlike mascots such as Hello Kitty. Nara’s interweaving of innocence and experience can have a potent effect on his viewers. Frog is both a finely-tuned iconic image and a spur to profound contemplation.

Untitled (Hi Watt Hi Watt), 2005

Christie’s London: 6 March 2025
Estimated: GBP 80,000 – 120,000
GBP 138,600 / USD 177,408

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959), Untitled (Hi Watt Hi Watt) | Christie’s

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled (Hi Watt Hi Watt), 2005
Colored pencil, crayon and acrylic on envelope
24×33 cm (9 1/2 x 13 inches)
Signed with the artist’s initials and dated ‘Y N. 2005’ (on the reverse)

“When I’m working on drawings, music just comes into my ear and goes straight out of my hand.”

 

 

Untitled, 2002

Phillips Hong-Kong: 8 October 2024
Estimated: HKD 800,000 – 1,200,000
HKD 1,651,000 / USD 212,610

Yoshitomo Nara – New Now: Modern & C… Lot 17 October 2024 | Phillips

One of the most representative contemporary Japanese artists, Nara Yoshitomo has been known for his style that blends the aesthetics of kawaii with a unique taste of slyness and dark humor. Among his prolific oeuvre that traverses diverse mediums, his drawings on paper epitomize the most playful and rebellious facet of his artistic persona. Often created spontaneously on either random scraps from notebooks or found posters, they hold together fragments of Nara’s everyday feelings, experiences and impressions, forming the artist’s ‘private musings’ and testaments to his continual creative energy in art. Executed in 2002, the current lot features the signature big-headed girl of Nara—the most iconic and widely beloved motif recurring throughout his works. As the artist’s ‘self-portrait,’ the big-headed girl is emotionally charged with his keen concern for the souls of the innocent, vulnerable and rebellious in our adult world. With a pair of piercing almond-shaped eyes and a subtle facial expression, the girl’s cuteness is fused with a nuanced sense of defiance. Such a figuration navigates the fine line between innocence and rebelliousness, mixing childlike simplicity with the complexities of adulthood. The same mischievous and somehow cynical counterbalance characterizes the very corpus of works that propelled Nara’s meteoric rise in the early 2000s.

Untitled, 2007

Christie’s London: 27 June 2024
Estimated: GBP 120,000 – 180,000
GBP 252,000 / USD 319,536

https://www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-6492257

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Untitled, 2007
Colored pencil on colored paper
41.9 x 29.6 cm (16 1/2 x 11 5/8 inches)
Signed in Japanese (on the reverse)

With her short cropped hair, dark green dress and rebellious energy, the girl in Untitled (2007) emits the youthful defiance that has come to typify works by Yoshitomo Nara. He is widely celebrated for his paintings and colored pencil drawings of juvenile, cartoonish characters with large gazing eyes and endearing personalities. They inhabit imagined and insouciant paper worlds, brandish absurd objects and props—knives, sprouts, cigarettes, and electric guitars—and express a wide range of capricious, childlike emotion. Stern and somewhat sulky, our subject hovers in indeterminate space. She stands upon a Japanese flag with her small feet positioned perfectly over its crimson sun. Emblazoned around her miniature figure are the words ‘Up Yours!’, and, ‘All the Nations!’. As an advocate of peace, questions of nationhood, conflict and world politics weave through Nara’s art in such pithy phrases and symbols. Exhibited at the Centro de Arte Contemporáneo de Málaga—the first show of the artist’s work in Spain in 2007-2008—the present work was one of twenty colored pencil drawings hung along the final wall of the gallery.

Mischievous, cute, and quietly ferocious, the present work attests to the enduring appeal of Nara’s little rebels.  Untitled bears the enlivening traces of artist’s hand, present in the rough ‘outside-the-line’ scribbles that imply the girl’s messy hair. Bracketed with Nara’s unfiltered, handwritten text, the image feels distinctly personal, like a secret note exchanged between friends.

Sad Dog, 1998

Phillips Hong-Kong: 1 June 2024
Estimated: HKD 800,000 – 1,200,000
HKD 1,651,000 / USD 211,369

https://www.phillips.com/detail/yoshitomo-nara/HK010224/171

In the mesmerizing works of Yoshitomo Nara, a Japanese artist born in 1959 who has since come to be renowned worldwide as an artworld phenomenon, the focal point often rests on portrayals of young children with disproportionately large heads. These depictions of ‘Nara Girls’ intriguingly deviate from the playful innocence one would initially associate with portrayals of childhood, as Nara instead layers his work with a sharp edge of skepticism.  Sad Dog showcases this distinct approach— the child confronts us viewers with downturned, almond-shaped eyes that are narrow in defiance, with a snarl that disrupts what might have been a smile, and a pronounced scar that tales of past woes. This juxtaposition of intimidation and sorrow, further set against the unexpected innocence of puppy ears, echoes the complex duality in Nara’s work. It evokes a sense of a young, defiant spirit confronting a shadowy world, a nod to Nara’s own isolated upbringing. The addition of charming puppy ears accentuates the character’s youthful innocence, drawing a connection to another recurring symbol in Nara’s work – the droopy-eared dog. This motif is a hallmark of Nara’s artistic expression, notably epitomized by his large sculpture at the Aomori Museum of Art in Japan.

The present work was made in 1998, during one of the most significant periods of Nara’s output. Following the recommendation of the American artist Paul McCarthy, Nara was invited to serve as a visiting professor at the University of California, Los Angeles. During his tenure, he resided with Takashi Murakami, who had received the same invitation. In 1998, at request of Naoko Yamano from the Japanese female trio band, Shōnen Knife, Nara crafted drawings for their album, Happy Hour. He also held his first solo museum exhibition in the United States at the Institute of Visual Arts, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. Meanwhile in Japan, the Preparatory Committee for the Aomori Museum of Art, set to open in 2006 in Nara’s hometown of Aomori Prefecture, began to acquire his work to add to their collection.

The Night, 2003

Sotheby’s New-York: 14 May 2024
Estimated: USD 600,000 – 800,000
USD 698,500

The Night | Contemporary Day Auction | 2024 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
The Night, 2003
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
72.4 x 51.4 cm (28 1/2 x 20 1/4 inches)
Signed with the artist’s initials and dated 2003 (on the verso)

Yoshitomo Nara’s The Night from 2003 captures the artist’s signature arresting visual power that harnesses the transcendent dynamism of the innocent, serene and doe-eyed gaze of the girl as its subject. Simultaneously rebellious and reflective. the child’s olive eyes narrow into a menacing glare and her lips tighten in a singular red line, yet her cheeks remain rosy and the lids of her eyes lined with an angelic baby blue. The child’s hair crowns her head in a fiery halo, tempered by the milky-white of her sweater. The effect is dazzling as defiance is softened with youthful naiveté. A testament to its significance within the artist’s broader oeuvre, The Night was included in the artist’s major travelling exhibition Yoshitomo Nara: Nothing Ever Happens from 2003 – 2005 which travelled around the US. The Night has remained in the same private collection for over two decades since it was acquired in 2003 from Blum & Poe in Los Angeles the same year it was executed.

YOSHITOMO NARA IN HIS STUDIO. NICK MARINO, “TRUE BELIEVERS: YOSHITOMO NARA PAINTS WHAT HE HEARS,” NEW YORK TIMES, 24 JULY 2020

Nara’s “big-headed girls”, a term coined by Yeewan Koon in her book, Yoshitomo Nara, have cemented themselves within contemporary art’s cultural lexicon. These girls persist as the artist’s most recognizable and distinct motifs, revisited time and again throughout Nara’s oeuvre. The cherubic figures are frequently employed as allegories for revolution. The present figure’s assertive expression disarms the viewer, asking Nara’s audience to wonder at what the child could be protesting. The combination of youthful features with complex emotional expression culminates in a sense of unease: the young girl conveys a wisdom that should be beyond her grasp. Art historian Kristin Chambers observes that, through his portraits of children, “Nara captures the tension between innocence and experience, physical isolation and mental freedom, containment and independence. [He] embraces the whole of the human condition and recognizes that, in fact, evil is an essential part of innocence.” By embracing seemingly paradoxical elements, Nara captures the nuance of human experience in the many faceted expressions of his subject.

YOSHITOMO NARA, DRAWING ROOM BETWEEN THE CONCORD AND THE MARRIMACK, 2010

A twenty year long fascination for Nara, the small girl in the present work is the utter embodiment of the artist’s endless pursuit and exploration of themes of solitary, rebellion and innocence that define the very essence of childhood. Nara characterizes his own childhood in the rural community of Aomori Prefecture as a lonely period during which he turned to music as a form of companionship. The artist was drawn to American rock music, particularly the alternative rock and punk music of the 1970s and 1980s. Nara’s favorite musicians include bands such as The Ramones and Nirvana as well as the singular artist Patti Smith. This attraction to counterculture and rebellion would manifest itself years later in the disaffected expressions of Nara’s intimidating protagonists.

Following Nara’s relocation from Germany’s Kunstakademie Düsseldorf in 1988 and homecoming to Japan in 2000, The Night represents a profoundly subtle tonal shift in his artistic practice. The geometric forms, such as the child’s pear-shaped head, oval eyes, linear mouth, and cylindrical neck, rendered in acrylic and colored pencil, recall Japanese anime and manga cartoons. Nara’s forms were also inspired by ukiyo-e woodblock prints, reflective of an appreciation for historical Japanese art as well as contemporary styles. In this way, the present work reads as a marriage between two cultural heritages that were formative to Nara. In fact, the artist continues to maintain studios in both countries, honoring the nations that shaped his artistic growth. In The Night, Nara’s subject serves as a confrontational talisman for disgruntled youth. This iconic imagery that embodies the rebellious spirit of rock music and the loneliness that defined the artist’s childhood captures the artist at his best. Nara’s fiercely expressive character leaves the viewer a feeling haunted and considering how innocence can be exploited as an illusion. In his depictions of girls, Nara captures a universal revolutionary spirit that resonates on a truly global scale.

Untitled, 2007

Phillips Hong-Kong: 29 March 2024
Estimated: HKD 800,000 – 1,200,000
HKD 1,905,000 / USD 243,544

Yoshitomo Nara – New Now Hong Kong Lot 23 March 2024 | Phillips

The solitary figure in this work is a young girl caught mid-stride, her downcast eyes and furrowed brow speaking to the weight of introspection among the viewers. Nara’s work often underscores our intimate connection to childhood, a time often associated with both unguarded innocence and the formation of those ‘guilty memories’. This work brings forth a vibrancy and texture that is both nostalgic and piercingly current, a bridge between the artist’s recollections and the viewer’s self-reflection. The phrase ‘must be a voyager…’ scrawled below the character serves as a poignant reminder of the journey of self-discovery and acceptance. It speaks to the complex seas of our inner worlds, sometimes dark and tumultuous, that Nara’s artworks so eloquently bring to the fore.

Drawing from a well of both Eastern and Western artistic traditions, Yoshitomo Nara’s figures evoke the focused isolation of traditional Japanese Ukiyo-e prints, while also embodying the introspective probing characteristic of Western Modernism. The vast emptiness surrounding the figure in this composition emphasizes her isolation, yet also suggests a world of possibility and the vastness of the human psyche. The artwork exemplifies Nara’s ability to express the shared experiences of solitude, rebellion, and the search for self through the simplicity and charm of his subjects. His works have not only integrated into the fabric of Japanese culture but have also been the cornerstone of vast international recognition. His art often serves as a vessel for emotional exploration, offering a mirror to the viewer’s own experiences of the less-apparent aspects of the self that Nara exposes in his work.

Untitled, 1995

Phillips Hong-Kong: 29 March 2024
Estimated: HKD 700,000 – 900,000
HKD 1,651,000 / USD 211,071

Yoshitomo Nara – New Now Hong Kong Lot 39 March 2024 | Phillips

Yoshimoto Nara’s Untitled (1995) features a child standing idly by a cactus. The figure holding a neutral and contemplative expression, stares into the distance whilst exhaling a puff of breath. The image presents a stark contrast: the child is dressed in a pair of boots, a winter outfit, and a thick hat that covers the ears, suggesting a cold season. On the other hand, to the right stands a tall cactus with multiple arms which is typically associated with hot, desert environments where winter attire would be out of place. The cactus perhaps reflects the child’s internal longing for the winter to end. This juxtaposition further implies a narrative or emotional metaphor, perhaps suggesting a feeling of being disoriented or contrasting internal states with external environments.

Kills Fascists, 2012

Christie’s London: 9 March 2024
Estimated: GBP 150,000 – 200,000
GBP 352,800 / USD 447,350

Yoshitomo Nara (christies.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (B. 1959)
Kills Fascists, 2012
Colored pencil on cardboard
31.7 x 31.7 cm (12 1/2 x 12 1/2 inches)
Signed with artist’s initials and dated ‘YN 12’ (on the reverse)

Created in 2012, Kill Fascists is a punchy, frank encapsulation of Yoshitomo Nara’s political and aesthetic beliefs. Using colored pencils, Nara has drawn one of his instantly recognizable figures, a wide-eyed child—more mischievous nonconformist than angelic youngster—who holds a red guitar. Red, a color associated with revolution and change, is a fitting choice given the message inscribed overhead: in block letters, Nara has written, ‘This Machine Kills Fascists’. The work pays homage to the American folk musician Woody Guthrie who, during the Second World War, stuck the same text onto his guitar. Guthrie, a staunch opponent to fascism, did not himself coin the phrase but borrowed the line from munitions factory workers who had written the message on their lathes. Just as these armaments would contribute to the war effort, so Guthrie believed that music could help destroy a fascist ideology. Having always loved music, Nara frequently draws and paints his impish figures wielding guitars, singing in bands and jamming out; the girl in the present work reappears in a drawing dating from 2017. Born in 1959, Nara grew up during a period when Japan was saturated with Western pop culture. He would spend his nights listening to the radio, tuning into the the Far East Network, an American station which played both the news and Western music. Although his first English purchase was the Bee Gees’ single ‘Massachusetts’, Nara became obsessed with rock-and-roll and punk. The latter’s anti-establishment ethos would come to define his visual idiom, which draws from music, children’s book illustrations, Japanese theatrical masks, Edo-period ukiyo-e woodblock prints, and comic books designs. Although initially compared to Takashi Murakami and his Superflat movement—which was influenced by manga and anime—Nara’s art lacks the glossy, purposefully mass-produced cuteness of his contemporary’s art. Instead, he uses western images and commodities to grapple with the world’s complexities.

Frog, 1998

Sotheby’s New-York: 29 September 2023
Estimated: USD 200,000 – 300,000
USD 609,600

Frog | Between Thought and Expression: Works from the Collection of A.G. Rosen | 2023 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Frog, 1998
Acrylic on paper
36.2 x 35.6 cm (14 1/4 x 14 inches)
Titled and dated ’98 (on the verso)

Bubbling with mischief and fierce independence, Yoshitomo Nara’s Frog beautifully exemplifies the emotional intensity inherent to the artist’s pictorial universe. Executed in 1998, a year pivotal to the evolution of Nara’s mature aesthetic, Frog invites us to investigate what narrative may exist beyond the deceptively simple painted expression. Unique to the artist’s oeuvre, our protagonist – whose wide round face, flat nose, and frog green eyes resemble that of the eponymous animal – does not confront the viewer with a direct gaze.  Frog was executed in 1998, when Nara was both nearing the end of his extended stay in Germany and solidifying his singular visual lexicon. Tranquil and subtly luminescent, Nara’s practice during the late 1990s signified a departure from his earlier works which had embraced thick black outlines and richly vibrant palettes. In a vein similar to that of Renaissance portraiture, his brushwork became increasingly fine and imbued the canvas with an ethereal, sensuous energy. Furthermore, the once exaggerated heads and disjointed body parts of Nara’s characters now evidenced “visible signs of humanization: their heads grew smaller, their expressions gentler, their body proportions approaching that of a real child, and their attitudes reflecting that of a thoughtful adolescent” In the absence of true linear perspective, the déformé style figure juxtaposed against an ambiguous vacuity functions as a conduit to another dimension. Intentionally disorienting, “exploring Nara’s world and its inhabitants can be as disconcerting as taking one of Alice’s trips through Wonderland,” Trescher notes.

NO!, 2011

Phillips Hong-Kong: 31 March 2023
Estimated: HKD 1,800,000 – 2,800,000
HKD 2,413,000 / USD 307,388

Yoshitomo Nara – 20th Century & Conte… Lot 105 March 2023 | Phillips

Strongly committed to social activism, Yoshitomo Nara has never shied away from expressing dissent or solidarity on controversial topics. His Twitter bio reflects this approach to politics, by stating: ‘NO WAR! NO NUKES! LOVE & PEACE!’. Since an early age, the Japanese artist has taken a firm position on different socio-political issues, particularly with regard to anti-war, anti-nuclear and civil rights movements. The tragedy of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which at the time of his infancy was still an open wound for Japan, as well as the presence of US military bases that were dispatched from the Japanese islands to Vietnam during his 1960s childhood, deeply influenced Nara’s political consciousness. Nurtured by protest songs and rock, his cultural visions have also been shaped by the global spread of hippie culture and pacifism. More recently, the artist took a stand against the Fukushima nuclear accident that followed the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in 2011, and against the Afghan war. Executed in 2011, NO! testifies to Nara’s political and social engagement by showing a brown-haired young girl with a frowning look – a familiar figure in the artist’s work – who communicates her contrariety to viewers by raising her arms and clenching her fists. The word ‘NO’ in capital letters, painted in red, followed by an exclamation mark, further confirms the rebellious nature of her feelings. In the upper left corner, two intersecting white bones form a cross.

The artwork was made after the Fukushima disaster, and the bones – also present in the pieces Drumming with Bones (2000), and Life is Only One! (2007), among others, subtly evoke the traditional Japanese concept of mono no aware, which refers to objects that instil poignant emotions in people and remind them of the transience of life. The depiction of skeleton parts can also suggest parallels with memento mori paintings, popular through art history, in which elements like skulls, crossbones, flowers and clocks are there to recall the concept of impermanence in the physical world. Naked skulls and crossed femurs are also a universal symbol of mortal danger.

Untitled, 2011

Sotheby’s London: 2 March 2023
Estimated: GBP 120,000 – 180,000
GBP 190,500 / USD 227,435

Untitled | Modern & Contemporary Day Auction | 2023 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Untitled, 2011
Colored pencil on paper
42 x 29.5 cm (16 1/2 x 11 5/8 inches)

Dogs are familiar protagonists in Yoshitomo Nara’s oeuvre and the present work, executed in 2011, returns to this character with typical wit and flair. Complete with a Rock-inspired hairstyle and spiked collar, Nara has drawn the dog with the same rounded faces and wide eyes as his portraits of children. Cartoon-like lines by the paw and tail illustrate action while the face is set in an expression of determined concentration, focussed on something just out of view. Nara’s animals often take on child-like characteristics, and the present work is situated somewhere between the two. It brings to mind characters from children’s picture books or animated films, which Nara has often cited as an important early inspiration. The artist has described the animals in his works as his “other self”: “it signified me leaving the familiar confines of Japan and liberating myself from my surroundings”

The present work reveals a sophisticated mode of drawing that recalls Nara’s paintings, with softly layered tones of pencil contained in a precise outline. Yeewan Koon has described how “Nara focuses on the formal properties of the pencil, pushing the medium’s expressiveness through a broad range of lines, tones, degrees of opacity, and movement” (Yeewan Koon, Yoshitomo Nara, London 2021, p. 62). The present example showcases the virtuosity of Nara’s drawing, finding a subtle luminosity in the layers of pencil on paper. With a masterful handling of form and medium, this drawing is exemplary of Nara’s iconic style, which has led to him becoming one of the most beloved contemporary Japanese artists working today.

Last Chance, 2012

Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 15 December 2022
Estimated: HKD 1,200,000 – 2,000,000
HKD 1,764,000 / USD 226,889

Last Chance | 最後機會 | Modern and Contemporary Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Last Chance, 2012
Colored pencil on corrugated board
32×32 cm (12 5/8 x 12 5/8 inches)
Titled in Japanese; signed and dated 2012 on the reverse

Having developed a focus on the formal properties of the pencil, the present work pushes the medium’s expressiveness through its broad range of lines, tones and degrees of opacity and movement, with Nara drawing long, gestural lines that sweep across the surface. This sophisticated mode of drawing recalls the artist’s painterly practice, using precise layers of lines to create a dense network of strokes reminiscent of brushwork, typifying the artist’s deceptively simple aesthetic. Whilst many of Nara’s portraits appear cute, or kawaii, on the surface, a singular portrait can exhibit a complex range of emotions from grief, anger, rage, pain and affection. Here, the lost, searching eyes of the child face away from the menacing red flag that seemingly references the work’s tittle, Last Chance, combining the artist’s two most important archetypes, the rebellious youth and the sullen, lonely child.

Despite the characteristically flat, unspeaking mouths of his figures, Nara frequently utilises text in his compositions, a visual effect that punctuates their two-dimensionality with a sense of energetic staccato and punchy rhythm. Often aggressive, the artist’s use of phrases like “I don’t give a fuck about everything” and “NO NUKES” invoke a provocative punk spirit despite Nara’s ostensibly cute subjects. Produced in the year following the devastating earthquake and subsequent tsunami in northern Japan in 2011, the present work reflects a noticeable shift in the artist’s work. Upon returning to his studio, Nara instinctually felt he was unable to confront the sterility of a white canvas, preferring to work with unexpected materials for their lived quality. The materiality of these works on cardboard, unlike canvas where the artist would paint and erase over and over again, allowed for a certain freedom and spontaneity.

“These materials that are very close to me, like panels, cardboard. These works were created pretty naturally.
I felt very free and enjoyed creating them without overthinking.”

Acutely affected by the destruction seen throughout Japan in the aftermath of 2011, the urgency of the phrase “It’s the Last Chance” (最後のチャンスさ) which appears in the periphery of the composition acts as an ecological and humanitarian warning to the viewer. The sullen, yet adorable child holding out the blood red flag baring the sinister skull and crossbones inflects the present work with a bewildering sense of foreboding despite the childlike innocence of the figure. The candid exploration of the human response to catastrophe seen in Last Chance has continued to be a key aspect of Nara’s work on cardboard, with one piece “Strike for Climate” (Skolstrejk för klimatet) from 2019 inspired by the Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg. A collection of these rallying and impassioned works on cardboard have been shown at Pace Gallery London and Dallas Contemporary, with many exhibited at Nara’s major retrospective held at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 2020. His conceptualisation of dejected yet adorable children blends a fairy tale innocence with a 1960s-inspired sense of protest, revealing a radical, rebellious potentiality for the marginalised and abandoned. Despite the ominous warning, the composition’s sense of childhood solitude and sincerity is instantly compelling, a beguiling example of Nara’s instantly recognizable oeuvre.

Full Moon Nose, 2003

Sotheby’s New-York: 19 November 2021
Estimated: USD 200,000 – 300,000
USD 453,600

Full Moon Nose | Contemporary Day Auction | 2021 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)

YOSHITOMO NARA (b. 1959)
Full Moon Nose, 2003
Acrylic and colored pencil on paper
72×51 cm (28×20 inches)
Signed, titled and dated 2003 (on the reverse)

Full Moon Nose from 2003 features a young girl in profile – her figure melting into and coexisting as the landscape, and her pronounced nose seemingly lifting the golden full moon, holding its place in the sky. Fantastical in conception, the girl has become larger than life and at one with the cosmos. The depiction of the young girl is the iconic embodiment of Nara’s career-long engagement with themes of solitary boldness and innocence that define the essence of childhood. Perfected over three decades of diligent reprisals, it is through the subject of the small girl that Nara has captivated the imaginations and gained the respect of museums and collectors worldwide. For this, he is indisputably recognized as Japan’s most internationally acclaimed living painter. Full Moon Nose perfectly epitomizes Nara’s use of the ‘minor’ child in a ‘major’ role – insisting that a child’s innocence and imagination in a corrupted world is one of the most powerful treasures on earth.