View of Remembrance (2010)
Lapis lazuli on canvas, 90x90 cm

The View of Remembrance series became Hiroshi Ōnishi’s artistic hallmark. Emerging from the depths of early morning mist during a moment of seasonal transition, the landscapes appear suspended between presence and dissolution. Rendered in monochromic blue (pure lapis lazuli mineral) the imagery offers no clear indication of seasonality. Instead, the landscape transcends the terrestrial realm, existing in a state of boundless space and absolute harmony.

The glimpse of sky framed by a tree’s crown evokes a contemplative image, one easily envisioned during meditation. Beneath the surface, a pasty underlayer of twigs and pine needles recalls the branching structure of a capillary network, while the thin upper paint layer produces the effect of a printed or woven textile. The series resonates with earlier masterpieces of Japanese art, notably Hasegawa Tōhaku’s late-sixteenth-century byōbu depicting pine trees in mist, as well as Hishida Shunsō’s Fallen Leaves (1909).