Apocalypse 1967

Tadashi Nakayama made this print, Apocalypse, using a woodblock technique. The shapes are like big puzzle pieces, aren't they? He's got this way of layering colors and textures that really makes you feel the physicality of the printmaking process. Look at that blobby black shape at the top, with the hand reaching out. The texture is almost like a cosmic dust, contrasting with the smooth blue shape just below it. I love how the red square kind of vibrates against the gray patterned background. It’s like a visual short circuit, a little jolt. There’s something about the relationship between the abstract shapes and the recognizable images - the hand, the figure below - that creates a sense of tension. This reminds me of Robert Rauschenberg's collages, how he combined seemingly disparate images and materials to create new meanings. Art is all about remixing and reinterpreting, right?