Naruto (whirlpool)

The Naruto Strait, separating Awaji Island from Shikoku, produces tidal whirlpools generated by the volume of water moving between the Inland Sea and the Pacific — a subject treated in classical Japanese printmaking as a meisho (famous place) and familiarly in Hiroshige's 'Snow, Moon, and Flowers' triptych, where the whirlpools stand for the moon view of the set. Ido Masao's print engages with this established lineage, using mokuhanga's registration system to set rotating bands of bokashi against a key block describing rocky shore and pine-clad headlands. The challenge of rendering circular currents in flat woodblock layers is addressed by overlapping curved color blocks and by exploiting the woodgrain in the water blocks to suggest the directional flow of the tide. Although Ido is principally known for his decades of work documenting Kyoto's temples, gardens, and traditional streetscapes, his treatment of Naruto situates his practice within a broader tradition of meisho-e, demonstrating a willingness to bring the same compositional discipline to subjects beyond the ancient capital.