Square Lines 3

"Square Lines 3" is the third numbered work in a series of etchings premised on the constraint of the square. Hamano's typical 22.5 x 22.5 cm format makes the perimeter of the plate itself an active compositional element: every internal line is read in relation to the four equal edges. The series investigates how variations in line density, spacing, and direction modulate optical behaviour within a fixed frame. As an intaglio process, etching gives Hamano a controlled bite — line weight is determined by the duration the plate is exposed to acid — which suits a vocabulary that depends on incremental differences. The work sits within her broader geometric programme, distinct from chance-driven series such as "by chance" but related through their shared interest in seriality and constraint. The square-format tradition links her practice both to mid-century European concrete and constructivist printmaking and to the contemporary Tokyo Geidai Printmaking Studio idiom in which she trained.