Born in Kyoto in 1928. He studied at the Department of Oil Painting, Faculty of Fine Arts, Tokyo University of the Arts. He went to France in 1952 as part of the first group of students awarded a scholarship by the French government, and through his encounters with critics Michel Tapié and Sam Francis, who were the leaders of Art Informel, he became interested in abstract painting, developing a dynamic style characterized by heavy textures and intense colors.

In 1956, he introduced Art Informel to Japan for the first time at the “The World: Today’s Art” exhibition held in Tokyo and Osaka, creating the informel whirlwind in the Japanese art world. He was internationally acclaimed as a central figure in the Art Informel movement, exhibiting at many international exhibitions, including the Venice Biennale in 1960. After that, he tried his hand at poetry and painting works, and around 1983 began the “Kacho Fugetsu” series, which revived traditional Japanese beauty, and in the late 1990s worked on paintings of war damage such as “Hiroshima” and “Nagasaki.” At the end of the 20th century, just before his death, his style underwent a major change, and he produced a new work based on the theme of “kogyaru,” which were a social phenomenon at the time. In this way, throughout his career, Imai pursued a uniquely Japanese style while transforming his themes one after another.

Modern Times was the first series in which figurative expression completely disappears in favor of pure, colorful abstraction. From the vivid and thick textures created by the paint thrown in with knives and brushes, one can sense the traces of Imai’s struggle to abandon his previous expression and develop a new method of expression. The series was so well received that the work crossed the Atlantic and was exhibited at the Signa Gallery in New York in 1958.