Fire of the Whole (すべての火)

Subete no hi, "fire of all," signals an interiority-saturated image typical of Murakami's 2018 output. The etching belongs to a body of work in which the copperplate functions, in the artist's own description, as a heart — a combustive interior space carved into metal. The "fire" of the title likely manifests through aquatint or spit-bite passages: spit-bite, in which acid is brushed onto the plate selectively, produces wash-like areas of varying density well-suited to flame, smoke, and emanation. The image probably centers on a small figure or body fragment from which luminous tonal areas radiate. As with much of Murakami's practice, the small format intensifies the encounter; viewers must approach to read the carved marks. The work continues the artist's investigation of the body as a site of contained energy and the medical scar as the origin of an expressive intaglio line.