May (Kusudama- Medicine Balls) c. 1910

Editor: We’re looking at “May (Kusudama- Medicine Balls),” a watercolor on paper hanging scroll, created around 1910 by Suzuki Toshimoto. I'm struck by the delicate rendering and muted palette. It feels so restrained, yet intentional. What jumps out to you when you consider this piece? Curator: I am drawn to consider the ‘Kusudama,’ or medicine ball, in this artwork. It isn't merely decorative. It's constructed. Consider the labor involved in assembling those delicate paper flowers, sewing them together, imbuing it with not just beauty, but perhaps ritual significance relating to health. And what materials would be readily available to Toshimoto, living as he did? What does the accessibility, or lack thereof, of these materials suggest? Editor: That's interesting. I hadn't considered the "making of" so carefully. I was just focused on how pretty it is! You're making me think about how the creation of this Kusudama may not have been just for art, but had deeper roots. Curator: Exactly. Think of the cultural context too. Japan in 1910 was going through tremendous change and modernization. The handmade nature of the kusudama could be seen as either resisting industrialization or co-existing alongside it. How might social pressures of this time have impacted his work and the use of such materials? Editor: So, even the choice of materials, watercolor on paper, carries meaning in this historical context? Curator: Absolutely. It challenges the Western notions of high art, drawing our attention to materials that were accessible. Toshimoto pushes against the perceived boundaries between craft and ‘fine’ art, giving this Kusudama more visibility. Editor: I never would have thought to look at a seemingly simple painting like this with such attention to material and labor. It gives me so much to consider moving forward. Curator: Indeed. It pushes us to consider not just the final artwork, but also the process, the hand that made it, and the culture that shaped both.