The Third Month 1909 - 1910

Kamisaka Sekka made this image of two figures in, well, the third month—though we don’t know the year—using ink and color on silk. It's like a fashion moment captured in time. The texture is smooth, almost dreamlike, inviting you into this quiet scene. Look closely at the robes. The patterning on the figure to the right is pretty incredible. See how the darker blues at the bottom of the robe fade into the cream at the top, giving the impression of a sky, or water. And the way the garments drape; there’s real attention to form, but it’s all softened, idealized. It reminds me a little bit of some of Édouard Vuillard’s interior scenes, where figures blend into the wallpaper, and reality feels a bit… hazy. It’s as if Sekka’s not just showing us what’s there, but how it feels to be there, in that moment. Art is all about opening up possibilities, right?