Sign (Kizashi) (artist’s proof)

Created in 1970 as an artist's proof, Sign (Kizashi) is a color woodblock print with embossing, a technique where uninked areas of the block are pressed into dampened paper to create raised or recessed textures visible only in raking light. The Japanese word kizashi means sign, omen, or first indication, suggesting something about to happen, a change in weather, a shift in circumstances, an approaching transformation. Chizuko Yoshida's use of embossing adds a tactile dimension that reinforces this theme: the embossed areas are hidden signs within the print itself, present but not immediately visible, requiring the viewer to look closely and from different angles to perceive their full content. The artist's proof status makes this a working impression from Yoshida's studio.