Two moorhens 1900 - 1930

Curator: Ohara Koson, also known as Shoson, created this watercolor print, "Two Moorhens," sometime between 1900 and 1930. It's a tranquil landscape study, very much in the Ukiyo-e tradition. Editor: It makes me think of winter, almost immediately. That subtle, hazy wash of grey... It's chilly and quiet, like the world's holding its breath. Curator: And that restraint, in a material sense, is key. Koson deliberately chose the watercolor medium, and the printmaking process, which democratized the image—making it reproducible and accessible to a wider audience, moving away from unique, high-art objects. The production value relies less on ornate skill and more on its replication. Editor: Interesting. I am seeing these birds poised in the shallows. There’s a stillness about them, a meditative quality, almost like they’re reflecting. Is it simply birds depicted realistically or something more? Curator: Consider the Ukiyo-e tradition – images of the floating world. The print format allowed these images of everyday life to circulate widely. Depictions of nature, like Koson’s moorhens, provided accessible subjects representing harmony and a balanced connection to nature itself. The watercolor process itself requires harmony, where application can change tone with humidity and other atmospheric details. Editor: It's funny how even something as ostensibly simple as the choice of birds speaks volumes. Their presence anchors the whole composition and injects an introspective tone into that chilly greyscape. Curator: Exactly. These prints are commodities – created and distributed in a particular economic climate – with all the production considerations, and that gives images such as this particular cultural meaning. Editor: When you put it that way, it adds a whole other layer. What seems like a simple, beautiful scene actually reflects complex systems of artistic labor. I see beyond the simple aesthetic surface. Thanks for opening my eyes to what I thought was a tranquil piece!