Biography
Aya Morton is a Portland-based illustrator and printmaker whose mokuhanga-inspired prints merge silkscreen with relief printing processes to produce beautifully rendered scenes of the Pacific Northwest. Working from her studio in the Portland, Oregon area, Morton brings together traditional Japanese woodblock printing influences with contemporary printmaking techniques to capture the landscapes, flora, and fauna of the region she calls home.
Morton's artistic practice spans illustration, printmaking, and fine art. With over fourteen years of experience in graphic novel and book illustration, she has worked as a freelance artist in both London and Portland. Her published works include illustrations for 'His Dream of the Skyland,' the first book in a trilogy written by Anne Opotowsky, as well as 'The Great Gatsby: The Graphic Novel,' 'The Days Are Long, The Years Are Short,' 'Wolf Eye Ranch,' 'The Road Home,' and 'Chinese Stories.' She has also contributed illustrations to Car and Driver Magazine and the Simon and Schuster publishing house.
Her printmaking practice blends leaf printing with silkscreen printing to create layered compositions that evoke the lush environments of the Pacific Northwest -- its forests, rivers, and seasonal transformations. A public art triptych she created for Main Street in Forest Grove, Oregon, was inspired by the summer migration of purple martins through the Pacific Northwest as they overlap with ships traveling along the Columbia River, demonstrating her ability to weave natural history and regional narrative into her visual work.
In 2026, Morton's prints were featured in 'Enduring Impressions: Contemporary Woodblock Prints,' an exhibition at the Portland Japanese Garden running from March 7 through June 15. The show, which explored how mokuhanga is experiencing a contemporary revival globally, included Morton alongside internationally recognized practitioners such as April Vollmer, Yoonmi Nam, and Kenji Takenaka. Her featured work, 'Fall on the Metolius' (2025), exemplifies her approach of merging traditional and contemporary printing methods to celebrate Pacific Northwest landscapes. The exhibition also traveled to the Honolulu Museum of Art.
Key Facts
- Nationality
- 🇺🇸United States
- Movement
- Contemporary Mokuhanga
Frequently Asked Questions
Aya Morton is a Portland-based illustrator and printmaker whose mokuhanga-inspired prints merge silkscreen with relief printing processes to produce beautifully rendered scenes of the Pacific Northwest. Working from her studio in the Portland, Oregon area, Morton brings together traditional Japanese woodblock printing influences with contemporary printmaking techniques to capture the landscapes, flora, and fauna of the region she calls home.
Aya Morton's work was shaped by the Contemporary Mokuhanga tradition in Japanese woodblock printmaking. Contemporary Mokuhanga: Contemporary mokuhanga (literally "wood-block print") encompasses artists working from approximately 1970 to the present who continue or reinvent traditional Japanese woodblock printing techniques.
Aya Morton is a contemporary printmaker whose work has been acquired by museum collections, confirming institutional recognition. Museum representation supports collector confidence. Prices range from $200 for smaller works to $5,000 for major compositions. Most prints sell in the $500–$2,000 range. Museum-collected contemporary printmakers represent a strong value proposition, as institutional validation often precedes market appreciation.