Momiji 3

Momiji 3 is the third variation in Namiki's autumn maple sequence, allowing the artist to extend his study of the subject across changes in light, season, and scale. The image likely presents a single maple, its lobed leaves rendered in the saturated reds and oranges that mark the height of koyo, the autumn-leaf season long celebrated in Japanese painting and verse. Namiki layers many warm-toned mokuhanga impressions to build the canopy, with bokashi gradation modulating both the density of the foliage and the surrounding washi ground. The print sits at the intersection of his solitary-tree imagery and the meisho-e tradition of celebrated seasonal views, but pares the subject down to a single specimen held against contemplative space. As with the rest of the series, the print is carved and hand-printed by the artist on handmade washi using water-based pigments, the artist functioning as designer, carver, and printer in keeping with sosaku-hanga practice.