Popox 1964

Hiroyuki Tajima made this print called Popox, and it’s like looking into a swamp; the top half feels like the surface of things, with dense clusters of organic matter, while the bottom is submerged and murky. I can imagine Tajima layering color upon color, the green and brown inks bleeding into one another to create a rich, mossy texture. Look at how the light seems to catch on the surface! And those little flecks of blue! You can almost feel him dabbing at the plate, coaxing out these surprising details. What was he thinking as he made this print? Was he trying to capture a specific place, or was he just letting the materials lead the way? For me, it brings to mind the work of other Japanese printmakers who combined abstraction with observations of nature. Artists are in constant dialogue, building on the ideas of those who came before, even as they push in new directions. It’s an ongoing conversation that we’re all invited to join.