Wereld der geuren Possibly 1905

Asai Chû made this artwork, Wereld der geuren, with paint and ink on paper. I’m immediately drawn to the flat colour and the shapes which create a stylized landscape. It’s a gentle and tranquil scene of trees, water and buildings, overlaid with a pattern or character in the foreground. What did Asai Chû want to emphasize by placing this symbol, which could be related to the artwork title meaning "world of scents"? The colour choices give the work a kind of dreamlike quality— the pale blues and yellows feel cool and refreshing, almost like the painting is exhaling. It reminds me of some of the flat, stylized landscapes created by the group of artists around the French painter, Maurice Denis. I can imagine Asai Chû carefully placing each stroke, considering how the colours interact and how the different elements of the composition fit together. For me, this artwork speaks to the way artists are always borrowing and building on each other's ideas, across time and space.