Printed 3-d model in plastic.

20 x 1 inches

うらを見せ表をみせば落ちるもみじ

良寛

Ryōkan death poem

Ura o mise omote o miseba ochiru momiji

Back showing, front showing, it falls...maple leaf.

Said to be the death poem of the priest/poet Ryōkan Taigu (1758-1831).

Original calligraphy (using alternate forms of hiragana called hentaigana) by Yoko Nishina. She wrote it in two lines, which I joined, scanned, connected the lines, and had 3-d printed in white plastic. Afterwards, I painted the characters black.

It hangs with invisible fishing line from a small balsawood cube that holds it far enough from the wall to create a shadow.

This piece was originally conceived as part of the “Shadow” exhibition in Kyoto, March 2014.