I have been practising mark making because I really want to be able to surrender to instinct, and somehow override that voice that tries to make everything make sense. As it is the rainy season, I am using flowers. Tsuyukusa because this is their time. Painting with flowers feels fragile. An act to be done in silence. The petals melt blue into the paper. They lead. I follow.

Soon the dayflowers will disappear for another year. These studies will be the last I make until they return.

Tsuyukusa (Commelina communis) is a delicate blue dayflower that grows during the rainy season in Japan. A wildflower and fleeting by nature, it blooms in the morning and starts to wither by early afternoon.

I gather the flowers in the late morning and work with them directly from the plant. The marks are made using only the flower itself. Nothing is fixed with chemicals or sealants. As part of this entirely natural process, the work remains sensitive to light and may continue to change slowly over time. Its colour will shift with the light it finds in your home. (I have a piece hanging on my wall and it’s maintained it’s mystical blue hue for 3 years and counting).

Tsuyukusa The flowers are here for a brief and tender moment. When summer takes hold, their time ends, and the plants will begin to fold themselves back into the earth.

Tsuyukusa has been used in art and textile work since the Edo period. It is well documented that it played an important part in Hokusai’s Ukiyo-e practice.

15th Tsuyukusa Gathering is an original work, not a print. Each piece is individually created by hand and is numbered, signed, and dated.

Created on lightweight washi paper
A3 (297 mm × 420 mm)

Postage

Orders are posted from Kamakura via standard airmail in a protective cardboard mailer.

Please note that standard airmail is untracked, and I cannot replace works that are lost in transit. If you would prefer tracked and insured shipping, please contact me before placing your order so I can arrange it.