Komorebi – Ichor

In my recent body of work, I explore the symbolic and material resonances of ichor, the fabled blood of the gods in Greek mythology. Ichor—neither entirely physical nor wholly spiritual—serves as a fitting metaphor for the liminal space that trees and nature inhabits. It is this duality that I sought to translate onto the canvas: the paradox of divine essence rendered through tactile gesture and ephemeral form.

This painting does not depict ichor literally; rather, it attempts to evoke its essence. Using layered glazes of paint I constructed a network of flowing marks that suggest veins, rivers, or currents. These lines are neither fixed nor chaotic; they drift, coagulate, and dissolve, mimicking the mythical fluid’s supposed ability to animate without decay. The movement of ichor becomes a visual metaphor for creative energy: ever-shifting, untouchable, yet undeniably present.

This work hovers between the natural and the metaphysical, confronting viewers with the tension between the seen and the sensed.

Ichor, in myth, is forbidden to mortals; its presence signals both divinity and danger. In this painting, I harness that dual symbolism to question where the boundary lies between human nature.