Ocean Entry Wake 1984-D

Noriko Kiyotsuka

A variant edition print by default, Noriko Kiyotsuka's "Ocean Entry Wake" is a sugarlift etching with industrial objects attached to its surface, including a sheet of metal leaf resembling galvanized steel. The effect is an aerial view that can be interpreted as an industrial hub or, as her title suggests, an abstracted seascape.

Kiyotsuka, a Japanese citizen born in Manchiuria, China, was formally trained in printmaking but taught herself how to solder, and would travel to Akihabara, a neighborhood in Tokyo also called "Electric Town" for its history as a hub for electronics and black market industrial parts after World War II, to collect specific metal findings in order to achieve the dimensionality and style that she became known for.

Her style is stark and minimalist, and features a sense of imposing yet fragile physicality in the dark silhouettes and carefully threaded wires, bolts, and condensors she weaves through each image.