From the Notebooks Mourning for Butterflies 1906

Fujishima Takeji made this painting, From the Notebooks Mourning for Butterflies, with watercolour on paper. Look at the way the butterflies seem to float! I can imagine Fujishima carefully wetting the paper, coaxing these vibrant insects into being with soft washes of color. The blue butterfly’s wings are a map of color. The paint is thin, almost translucent, allowing the white of the paper to shine through. I wonder if Fujishima was thinking about the fleeting nature of beauty, the way colors shift and change in the light. These butterflies are part of a conversation with other artists who have tried to capture nature on paper, from botanical illustrators to abstract painters. The artist has left space for us to add our thoughts and feelings, so let your mind take flight like a butterfly. What do you feel when you see these colours and these forms? What memories or associations do these creatures bring to mind?