Chihiro Taki (滝千尋) — Japanese Woodblock Print Artist

Biography

Chihiro Taki is a Japanese mokuhanga artist born in Shizuoka in 1988, whose layered landscape prints evoke a poetic space between illusion and reality, inviting contemplation of the moments and places we want to remember. As an instructor at the Mokuhanga Innovation Laboratory in Fujikawaguchiko and Tokyo, she plays a vital role in transmitting traditional Japanese woodblock printing techniques to the next generation of international artists.

Taki earned her BA in Fine Art (Painting and Printmaking) from Musashino Art University in 2011, followed by a master's degree in printmaking from the same institution in 2013. Her academic training provided a strong foundation in both traditional and contemporary approaches to printmaking, and she quickly distinguished herself within Japan's competitive art scene.

Her artistic practice is defined by two distinctive mokuhanga techniques. Goma-zuri, in which very watery diluted paints are applied to the block, produces the soft, atmospheric effects that characterize her landscapes. Kira-zuri, traditionally used for decorative expression in ukiyo-e, adds a luminous shimmer to her compositions. The combination of these techniques creates prints that seem to glow from within, suggesting weather, light, and the passage of time through delicate layers of transparent color on washi paper. Her work draws inspiration from moments and places she encounters and wishes to preserve, developed until the images achieve a poetry that transcends literal representation.

Taki has exhibited extensively both in Japan and internationally. Her solo exhibitions include shows at cFshe Gallery in Tokyo (2018) and Gallery Natuka in Tokyo (2014, 2015). She has participated in major group exhibitions including the CWAJ Print Show, the Spiral Take Art Collection, and the 3331 Art Fair. International venues include exhibitions in Melbourne, Moscow, Antwerp, and Nicosia. She has shown at the London Original Print Fair (2018) and participated in the International Mokuhanga Conference exhibitions in Nara (2021) and Echizen (2024). Her awards include the Shunyou-kai Encouraging Prize (2016) and the Musashino Art University Laboratory Prize (2013). Since 2018, she has served as an instructor at MI-LAB, teaching workshops to visiting international artists.

Key Facts

Active Period: 1988
Nationality: 🇯🇵Japan
Movement: Contemporary Mokuhanga
Works Indexed: 12

Frequently Asked Questions

Chihiro Taki is a Japanese mokuhanga artist born in Shizuoka in 1988, whose layered landscape prints evoke a poetic space between illusion and reality, inviting contemplation of the moments and places we want to remember. As an instructor at the Mokuhanga Innovation Laboratory in Fujikawaguchiko and Tokyo, she plays a vital role in transmitting traditional Japanese woodblock printing techniques to the next generation of international artists.

Chihiro Taki was active born in 1988. They were associated with the Contemporary Mokuhanga movement.

Chihiro Taki'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.