Iris

A close study of iris blossoms rendered in mezzotint, an unusual medium choice for a kacho-e subject more commonly associated with traditional moku-hanga. Saito works the copper plate with a rocker to create a uniform burr, then burnishes the highlights down to graduated mid-tones, allowing the petals to emerge from a deep, velvety ground. The iris (kakitsubata or ayame) is a long-standing motif in Japanese visual culture, tied to the sixth-month rains and to classical poetry. Saito's intaglio treatment lends the flower a sculptural weight that differs from the flat color planes of nishiki-e woodblock printing. The print sits within his broader body of botanical and figural work that translates Japanese subjects through European intaglio technique. Like Hamaguchi Yozo, his contemporary in mezzotint, Saito treats the medium as a vehicle for contemplative stillness rather than narrative.