Branch 1b

Branch 1b belongs to a numbered sequence in which Okamoto returns to one of his foundational subjects: the structural form of a single tree branch, isolated and studied with the eye of a botanical illustrator. The 1b designation suggests a variation or alternate state within the first group, where the artist investigated the same compositional motif through different color treatments or block arrangements. Mokuhanga lends itself well to the subject: fine carved lines capture the texture of bark and the direction of growth, while overprinted color blocks build the leaves, buds, or seasonal coloration. Bokashi gradations supply atmospheric ground without competing with the principal motif. Such isolated botanical studies sit at the heart of Okamoto's practice as a print-naturalist, where the careful observation of a single plant element is treated as worthy of sustained, multi-print investigation — closer in spirit to scientific illustration than to conventional kacho-e.