On the Deck 

Kanae Yamamoto made this print, On the Deck, using the medium of woodblock. The composition is dominated by a textured plane, a play of line and color suggesting the surface of a ship's deck. Yamamoto fragments the scene into myriad flecks, each a signifier of light and shadow, which coalesce to form a woman leaning against the railing. Her figure, though central, is almost absorbed by the overall pattern, questioning the traditional figure-ground relationship. There's a tension between representation and abstraction at play. The subject matter is discernible, yet the execution pushes towards a deconstruction of form. The structural repetition of marks, applied in layers, flattens the image, challenging Western notions of depth and perspective. This challenges the viewer to engage with the artwork on a structural level. The all-over pattern is not just decorative, it destabilizes any fixed reading. This reflects a broader interest in the early 20th century of overturning traditional artistic conventions.