Over a black background, larger and smaller brushstrokes in golden color are rhythmically distributed. Beginning with the upper part of the heavily emphasized first character kan, the dots and shapes line up like stepping stones, finally coming to a rest with the part representing the second character zan. It reminds of groups of islands scattered over an ocean. This is in striking contrast to the Kanzan variation in ink on paper in this catalog (p. 42), where each stroke blends into to next as if the word was written with a single line. Perhaps Morita wanted to avoid the more linear method this time, and worked on the idea of ink splashes reverberating like concentric waves on a surface. While no trace of this is left on the paper, the brush still continued its movement from dot to dot, stroke to stroke. With the density of the color reflecting the saturation of metallic pigment in the brush, the viewer is invited to complete the mental image of a partially visible, partially invisible movement from “island” to “island.” It is apparent that Morita’s preferred approach is to imply rather than to make explicit.

Morita Shiryu (avant-garde calligrapher; 1912–1998)
Avant-garde calligrapher from Hyogo Prefecture. Like fellow artist Inoue Yuichi, Morita studied under the calligraphy master Ueda Sokyu. He co-founded the avant-garde group Bokujinkai together with Inoue and was the founder and editor of the journal Bokubi (Beauty of Ink), both of which revolutionized traditional Japanese calligraphy and spread knowledge of Japanese avant-garde calligraphy to an international audience. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor with Dark Blue Ribbon.