North Wind II 1977

Editor: So, here we have Matsumi Kanemitsu's "North Wind II," created in 1977. It's a mixed-media print, and it strikes me as having a very stark, almost desolate quality. What do you see in this piece? Curator: For me, this work begs questions about its production. Look at the textures. How did Kanemitsu achieve that layered, almost frosted effect using mixed media? What specific printing processes are at play here, and how do they relate to the broader printmaking industry of the time? Is it a subversion of traditional printmaking through materiality? Editor: That's interesting, I hadn't considered the process so much. It's easy to get caught up in the imagery itself. Do you think the choice of these particular materials relates to the subject matter? Curator: Absolutely. The frosted effect evokes a sense of coldness, of course. But thinking materially, where do these materials come from? How were they processed? How did they contribute to or critique consumer culture at the time? Consider the artist’s labor in selecting and manipulating these elements. Does this process connect to our experience of art and object making, perhaps the rise of disposable artworks? Editor: So, it’s not just about the ‘North Wind’ being represented, but also about how that representation is physically created and the materials that enable it? Curator: Precisely! We have to acknowledge the hand, the process, the materials that give the artist agency in the making. Where does the hand begin and the technology end? What stories do the material processes themselves tell about art and industry in the 1970s? Editor: I guess I'll be looking at abstract art in a whole new way now! Thinking about it materially adds so many more layers. Curator: It transforms our understanding and deepens our engagement, inviting a more critical reading.