Artwork Description

Title: Ray
Artist: Keiko Moriuchi
Date: n.d.
Medium: Mixed media on canvas
Dimensions: 28.6 x 23.9 in (72.7 x 60.6 cm)

1. Artwork Identification
Ray is a luminous and tactile work by Keiko Moriuchi, executed in vibrant golden-yellow impasto on canvas. The surface is marked by dense vertical strokes of pigment, punctuated by a bolder central band that bisects the composition with subtle emphasis. This vertical and horizontal cross-like formation brings architectural balance and quiet symbolism to the work. The deeply textured paint evokes movement and light, while the golden palette imbues the surface with an almost sacred aura.

2. Artistic Style and Influences
This painting stands firmly within the lineage of post-Gutai material abstraction. Moriuchi’s disciplined application of paint—layered thickly, repetitively, and with rhythmic consistency—exemplifies her lifelong dialogue with matter, gesture, and space. Her use of gold may evoke Buddhist iconography or sacred objects, yet it also resonates with Western color field painting and the sensuous minimalism of artists like Piero Manzoni or Lee Ufan. The tension between meditative repetition and expressive energy is a hallmark of her style.

3. Historical Context
A pivotal figure in the Gutai Art Association, Keiko Moriuchi began exhibiting with the group before officially joining in 1968. Influenced by her mentor Jiro Yoshihara and her experiences living in New York from 1965, Moriuchi developed a unique visual language that synthesizes Eastern philosophy and Western avant-garde methods. Her early installations—most notably the arrangement of 108 white floor cushions—established her interest in formal repetition, ritual significance, and minimalist poetics. Ray continues this exploration through the language of paint.

4. Provenance
Provenance documentation can be provided upon request.

5. Condition and Conservation
The painting is in very good condition, with a stable impasto surface and no signs of cracking, fading, or structural compromise. The texture is well preserved and the canvas professionally mounted.

6. Artistic Significance
Ray is a profound representation of Moriuchi’s mature practice—fusing material presence with spiritual resonance. The interplay of surface, rhythm, and color offers viewers an immersive, contemplative experience. As a continuation of the Gutai ethos into the contemporary moment, this work holds both historical and artistic value, and would be a significant addition to any collection focused on postwar Japanese art or material abstraction.