Shigeki Kuroda (b.1953), Japanese

“This is another painting by Joe Hendry exploring the theme of the kilted Scottish figure. The man is shown from behind, hands clasped behind his back, standing quite calmly on the canvas.

What I like about this one is its simplicity. There’s nothing complicated about it — just a figure, a kilt, and a quiet bit of attitude. Hendry manages to make something very Scottish feel fresh and contemporary at the same time.”

Shigeki Kuroda (born 1953) is a Japanese printmaker known internationally for his distinctive intaglio prints, particularly compositions featuring bicycles and umbrellas rendered in motion. He was born in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.

Kuroda studied painting at Tama Art University in Tokyo, graduating in the late 1970s and later completing a master’s degree there.  During this period he began to focus on printmaking and started producing intaglio prints in 1972, developing technical skill in etching and related processes.

In 1984 Kuroda travelled to the United States through a Japanese government fellowship, where he further developed his expertise in printmaking techniques including etching, drypoint, mezzotint and aquatint.

His prints are immediately recognisable for their recurring imagery of bicycle riders carrying umbrellas, often shown in layered or blurred formations to suggest movement and the passage of time.  The motif emerged in the 1970s and has remained central to his work for decades, allowing him to explore rhythm, repetition and motion within the print medium.

Kuroda’s prints have been exhibited internationally and are held in a number of public collections including the British Museum, Cleveland Museum of Art, Yokohama Museum of Art and the Tochigi Prefectural Museum of Fine Arts.

Today, Shigeki Kuroda is regarded as an important contemporary Japanese printmaker whose technically refined intaglio prints combine humour, movement and a distinctive visual language.