Bathroom in the Morning - Hanga Vol. 13 1928

Koshiro Onchi made this abstract print titled 'Bathroom in the Morning' with woodblocks, and just look at that dreamy yellow, almost as if it were still half asleep. What strikes me is the way Onchi embraces the accidental, where the process is visible. The texture of the woodblock comes through, with the grain and imperfections adding a layer of depth. The yellow feels warm and intimate, like the hazy light filtering through a window. See how the circles on the left seem to float? They're like bubbles or maybe even reflections, and the lines that run down from them feel like the trace of water or steam. It's not precise, and that's the beauty of it, there's a feeling that the artist lets the medium lead the way, trusting the process to find its own form. Onchi was part of the Sosaku-Hanga movement, which valued individual expression in printmaking. The work of someone like Joan Miró comes to mind, in how both artists were embracing abstraction and a kind of playful exploration of form. To me it's like they are having a conversation across time and space.