Lilies 1900 - 1930

Ohara Koson made this print, "Lilies", sometime between the late 19th and early 20th century. Look at how he plays with the negative space! The lilies float against a soft blue background, their white petals outlined with delicate strokes. I wonder about Koson's process. Was he trying to capture the fleeting beauty of these flowers, or to create a kind of idealized form? The contrast between the crispness of the lilies and the almost hazy background makes me think he was interested in memory, the way a form appears and dissolves in our minds. The lilies' curving stems and petals seem to bend and sway, like the flowers are dancing. And the way the colors shift in the background, from a darker to lighter blue, gives the image depth. It feels like a meditation on time and change, a reminder that everything, even the most beautiful flower, is always in motion. It makes me want to get into the studio.