Peel of Print 1

Peel of Print 1 inaugurates Abe's series investigating the printed surface as a sculptural rather than purely graphic field. Working in mixed media on paper, Abe builds up layers of ink and printing matter and then physically peels portions of the surface away, exposing the substrate beneath and producing a registration of absence alongside the deposited image. The technique departs from the flat, planographic convention of [nishiki-e](/glossary/nishiki-e) while remaining grounded in the same printmaking lineage: pigment carried into fiber, then negotiated. As an opening statement, the first print establishes the procedural vocabulary — controlled lift, residual ink trace, exposed [washi](/glossary/washi) tooth — that the subsequent seven prints develop. The work sits within the contemporary Japanese hanga tradition descended from sōsaku-hanga, where the artist conducts every stage of production, and reflects the conceptual print pedagogy associated with Kyoto Seika University, where Abe trained, and Aichi Prefectural University of Fine Arts and Design, where he completed graduate studies before joining Joshibi University of Art and Design.