Lyric IX

Lyric IX is a later entry in Onchi's extended Lyric series of abstract woodblock compositions, in which numbered iterations explored variations of mood, color relationship, and spatial rhythm without representational reference. By the ninth print in the sequence, Onchi had refined his approach to non-objective printmaking: hand-cut blocks of varied grain, paper-printed textures, and overlaid color planes were combined freely, sometimes incorporating found materials such as string, leaves, or fabric pressed into the inked surface. Each print in the series was conceived as an autonomous expressive event — typically pulled in very small numbers and signed by the artist — embodying the sosaku-hanga principle that the print is not a multiple but a singular work made entirely by one hand. Lyric IX extends the meditative, music-adjacent abstraction of the earlier numbers while reflecting the assured handling of layered tone and improvised mark-making characteristic of Onchi's mature abstract idiom.