The thief and the cock

This narrative title suggests a fable or folk-tale subject, perhaps drawing from Aesop or Japanese folklore traditions. In Hagiwara's vocabulary, such a title would likely be rendered through abstracted forms rather than literal illustration. Building the image from many separately carved blocks — sometimes twenty or more — allows for layered tonalities in which figures emerge from atmospheric ground. The bokashi gradients possible through hand-rubbed baren printing lend the composition the translucent depth characteristic of his work. Within Hagiwara's wider output, narrative or literary subjects sit alongside the geological abstractions of his Stone Garden series, demonstrating his conviction that the multi-block woodcut could carry any image the carver imagined. As a sosaku-hanga artist, Hagiwara designed, carved, and printed his own blocks, embedding personal authorship into every stage of the finished print.