Look at this - is this not the most beautiful wood block print that you have ever seen? (it's a detail, to be accurate, taken from a worn-out calendar).
The artist is Kitagawa Utamaro (1753-1806), and at the beginning of this month I saw his work in an exhibition here in Minneapolis. I was so enchanted by his work, I almost swooned a dozen times - I was sure security was going to have to carry me out. If only I could have married him, I would have been surrounded by his beautiful art for my entire life. I'm too late, he's been dead for 206 years.
The only thing left to do is to attempt to do beautiful art myself. I think I'll steal his idea of the gold fish bowl. Did I say that? Let me rephrase. I think I'll "reinvent" the idea of the gold fish bowl in my next drawing.
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