Lilies

Lilies rendered in Hodo's woodblock technique — their broad, open blooms and distinctive spotted petals (if tiger or Asiatic lilies) or pure white forms (if Madonna lilies) given graphic treatment through the layered color printing of the shin-hanga process. The lily was a subject rich with associations in Japanese floral tradition: summer bloom, purity, and a somewhat exotic presence in the garden that made it a popular kachō-ga subject. Hodo's precise botanical observation is evident in the careful rendering of petal form and color.