Cormorant 1910

Here's a woodblock print of a Cormorant by Ohara Koson. Just look at that bird in flight! I wonder what it was like for Koson to make this image, the concentration, intuition, and skill involved in capturing this scene. He knew the bird, the paper, the blade, and the ink so well. The image feels like such a snapshot of nature, and yet the scene is composed of considered marks and cuts. I’m curious about the way he rendered the water’s surface with those subtle horizontal lines. It gives the water a real sense of movement. Koson’s wider practice included a variety of birds and animals depicted in their natural habitats. I wonder if he was trying to channel a more profound connection to nature, one that so many artists have strived for across time. I feel like artists are in an ongoing conversation, riffing off each other and inspiring each other. Koson offers us his vision; we take it and make it our own.