"Crescent moon lights buckwheat flowers – this hazy earth."

On a trip to the Clark Art Gallery: So I spent the afternoon looking at art with my daughter in the small town that we live in, which just happens to have a world class art museum blocks from town center. I'm in love with the two hours we zipped about and inhaled 63 pieces of Japanese woodblock prints. We went counter-directional to avoid bothering others with our pace; we talked loudly about which our favorites were (we overlapped in so many rooms); we started with one favorite per room, quickly allowing for three. By the time we were to the fourth space or so we began just ranking as many as touched our fancy. One series of seven pieces (all winners!) was labeled "Eight Views of Ōmi" by Itō Shinsui. We accosted the security guard to demand where the eighth was and were reluctant to only have seven favorites of seven from the series. And then we found a gentleman, Kawase Hasui, who was influenced by these same eight views and produced gloriously detailed and nuanced prints in response. I took advantage of the Clark's generous policy on allowing photo taking (without flash, please) and snapped dozens of reminders of my "picks."

My brain is buzzing, my insides are saturated with the images my eyes drew in. I do not know what words to place with my feelings. I just want to wander from print to print like a ghost in a Harry Potter painting and find my quiet me...

From the clark Art Website: "Japanese Impressions: Color Woodblock Prints from the Rodbell Family Collection is the first exhibition at the Clark to focus specifically on Japanese prints from its permanent collection. Featuring selections from a foundational gift made in 2014 of sixty-three woodblock prints from the Rodbell Family Collection, as well as several loans from private collections, the exhibition highlights a century of Japanese color woodblock printing represented by three generations. "

[With each of a few prints I liked I have placed a poem by Basho. Although there is way more to Japanese poetry than Haiku, the brevity of his poems works well as captions for the prints I chose.]

Parting,
straw-clutching
for support.

Waves scaling
Sado Island –
heaven's stream.

Fading bells –
now musky blossoms
peal in dusk.

In my new robe
this morning -
someone else

Winter downpour –
even the monkey
needs a raincoat.

And my daughter's favorite of the day!:

Cherry blossoms –
lights
of years past.