Bell Tower in the Rain at Okuyama 1947

Hasui Kawase made this woodblock print of a Bell Tower in the Rain in Okuyama, but we don’t know exactly when. The deep blues and grays create a shimmering wetness. The reflections on the street make the whole scene feel fluid and alive. I think about Hasui walking around in the rain, trying to capture that feeling of being in that particular place. What was it like to be there, experiencing that weather? The tower looms over the town, and the reflections of the buildings stretch and warp on the ground. It’s like the world is breathing. I keep thinking about what it must have been like to carve the wood for this print. Each line, each shape has to be carefully considered and cut to create just the right effect, like Sol LeWitt's complex instructions to the drafters of his wall drawings. Just as I can imagine the feeling in the rain, so too I imagine the feeling of the wood under the blade. Painting and printing, all art, is a constant conversation between artists across time.