Aoumi (BlueSea)

The title — 青海, Aoumi or 'blue sea' — signals a seascape, an unusual subject within Morimura's predominantly architectural oeuvre. The image features a stretch of open water rendered in graduated blues, framed by coastline or a glimpse of pine, torii, or fishing craft. Morimura typically achieves his water surfaces through bokashi (gradient inking) applied wet and pulled across the woodgrain, so that no two impressions are identical. The flat planes of indigo, ultramarine, and cerulean characteristic of his palette carry the composition, with finer keyblock detail reserved for the architectural or natural element punctuating the horizon. The subject relates to a small body of coastal scenes within his work that depart from temple precincts to consider Japan's relationship with the sea — pertinent in a country where Shinto shrines, fishing villages, and marine vistas are inseparable. The print is produced in his characteristic mokuhanga method of hand-cut cherry keyblocks and registered color blocks printed on washi.