Kudan torii 1945

Kawakami Sumio made this print called ‘Kudan torii’ using woodblock, and it feels so contemporary even though it's from another time. The way the wood is carved and printed creates these simple but really expressive lines and shapes, like the horizontal strokes of blue that suggest the sky. It's almost like Sumio is thinking about what a sky *is* rather than trying to make one. The blocks of color are pretty flat, but the texture of the wood gives everything a kind of a handmade feel. It’s easy to see the layers of carving and printing that bring the image to life. Check out the way the train tracks cut across the foreground! That stark, almost brutal line throws everything else into perspective. And it makes you think about connections between the past and the present. Sumio makes choices that speak to a longer cultural conversation, and open up a space of possibility.