Blum & Poe opening Tokyo office to strengthen ties with Asia Timothy Blum, left, and Jeff Poe, co-owners of Blum & Poe, stand in front of an untitled piece by artist Chris Vasell in 2007. Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times October 3, 2012, 11:45 a.m. Los Angeles art gallery Blum & Poe is opening an office in Tokyo to strengthen its ties with Asian artists, the gallery said this week. Ashley Rawlings, a former managing editor at ArtAsiaPacific, has been named director of the office. Blum & Poe, located near Culver City, already represents some prominent names in Asian art, including Takashi Murakami, Yoshitomo Nara, Lee Ufan and Zhang Huan. The gallery said that Tokyo was selected given the gallery's long-standing relationship with Japan and Japanese artists, as well as to "promote our entire gallery program in the region." Tim Blum said in an email that the new Tokyo office will feature a small exhibition space and viewing rooms. Blum, who is a co-owner with Jeff Poe, said that gallery staff has made "hundreds of trips" to the region in the past 25 years. He said that "there are no plans for a physical space in China at this time. Tokyo feels like the best place to set up an Asian base for us. Blum & Poe recently mounted a well-received exhibition titled "Requiem for the Sun: The Art of Mono-ha," a group show devoted to Japanese art during the late 1960s and early 1970s. The show later traveled to the Gladstone Gallery in New York. The gallery's Tokyo office is expected to open within the next few months. Art review: Matt Johnson at Blum & Poe Art Review: "No Person May Carry a Fish Into a Bar" at Blum & Poe Art review: 'Requiem for the Sun: The Art of Mono-ha' at Blum & Poe