Very good condition.
Signed on the lower right.
Signed on the bottom left of the back, titled and dated on the center-right on the verso.

Renowned contemporary Japanese artist Yokoo Tadanori (1936-) was born in Nishiwaki City, Hyogo Prefecture, and he came into the limelight as a graphic designer and illustrator after moving to Tokyo in 1960. Deeply influenced by Picasso's major retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, Yokoo shifted his focus to painting in 1980. Following his so-called "Painter's Declaration," he explored and experimented with his painting expression, simultaneously experiencing the international trends of neo-expressionism during the 1980s.

The artwork Portrait of Mr. Haizuka Teruzo was painted in 1981, marking one of Yokoo's earliest works after his "Painter's Declaration." Mr. Haizuka was the managing director of Haizuka Printing in Kyoto in the 1980s, and played a significant role in Yokoo's poster production, while their professional collaboration developed into a close and familial bond. Yokoo depicted Mr. Haizuka as the motif in several works. In this particular piece, Mr. Haizuka is in the posture of a traditional portrait, wearing a suit and with his arms crossed behind his back, but the background is rendered in a pale blue hue, emitting an aura that appears to float around his body. Although this is a portrayal, Yokoo's unique portrait goes beyond mere imitation, incorporating his imagination and personal narrative, resulting in a distinctive and elevated work of portraiture.