Two Deer 1900 - 1930

Ohara Koson made this print of two deer under the moon sometime between the late 19th and early 20th century. Look how the colors have been softened, like the whole scene is being gently diffused. It’s as if the artist is reminding us that we’re always looking at the world through a kind of fog. The animals here have a very particular kind of stillness. They almost appear as stuffed toys. I particularly like how Koson shows the deer’s fur through these tiny, careful marks. You can see the hand of the artist making each mark, almost as if the artist is mimicking the process of a deer shedding its coat in winter. These are very delicate marks. Koson’s use of light and dark is interesting, too. It reminds me a little of Marsden Hartley, though Hartley’s work is far more gestural, more rough. Both artists are interested in depicting light in a way that feels incredibly still, quiet, and intimate. I think of art as an ongoing conversation, a way to see the world, and to notice things we might otherwise miss.