Japanese artist Motoko Morita (森田元子) was one of the most active female painters in Japan during the turbulent years of the early Showa period from the 1920s into World War II and post war eras. She studied under the Western-style (洋画) painter Saburōsuke Okada (岡田三郎助) in 1922. After graduation, she went to France to study the history and techniques of Western European painting. After returning to Japan, she exhibited her works mainly at the Kanten (now Nitten) and Kofukai exhibitions, and steadily established a reputation for herself. After the war, she became the first female juror for the Nitten and a professor at Joshibi University of Art and Design, while also continuing her activities in various art fields, including illustrations for newspapers, magazines, and novels. Many of her works were lost due to the war, but what remains shows that she consistently depicted women seated in chairs in a room. In the beginning, she painted women wearing brightly colored clothes in “modern” spaces, but she gradually developed into portraits with darker, heavier colors and lines, and in her later years, she expanded into a more figurative world using strong vermilion. In 想い (pronounced Omoi), Morita depicts a young Japanese woman seated in a light teal colored, wooden chair, her gaze directed inward, and her hands are clasped in front of her chin. This inward-focused posture, combined with the muted color palette, creates a sense of quiet contemplation. The background features a patterned tapestry. Flowers in a vase, a small wooden box on a table, and a white cat lying on the floor next to the chair further create a sense of an intimate, home-like atmosphere. She wears a dark, almost velvet, dress. Her expression is serene, and her gaze is directed somewhat downward. Her hair is simply pulled back and away from her face. She also wears a bracelet on her right wrist and a beaded necklace.

想い (Thinking) by 森田元子 / Motoko Morita (Japanese) - Oil on canvas / 1947 - National Museum of Modern Art (Tokyo, Japan) #WomenInArt #art #WomanArtist #ArtText #森田元子 #MotokoMorita #JapaneseArtist #WomenArtists #WomensArt #NationalMuseumofModernArt #東京国立近代美術館 #MoritaMotoko #JapaneseArt #thinking #MOMAT