Keiko Moriuchi, 龍蟠龍 Dragons in Eternal Circle I, 2025
Acrylic and 24k yellow gold leaf on canvas
22.7 x 15.8 x 3 cm
Condition: Very good
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3つの龍が桃をささえている。
Three dragons supporting a peach.
In 龍蟠龍, three dragons bite each other’s tails to form a perfect circle. The motif comes from ancient Chinese art, where such entangled dragons symbolize balance and eternal motion. For Moriuchi, the image represents heaven, earth, and humanity bound together, each dependent on the others. The dragons, twisting into endless patterns, suggest a universe without beginning or end. In her hands, this ancient symbol becomes a modern meditation on cycles, connection, and the unbreakable ties that hold all things together.
Inscription on the verso:
龍蟠龍
Dragons in Eternal Circle
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Keiko Moriuchi 森内敬子 (Japanese, b.1943) is an artistic force to be reckoned with. Not only was she the final member to join the Gutai Art Association, but she was also the only member to be invited to join by Jiro Yoshihara (Japanese, 1905-1972), the collective’s founder.
Moriuchi creates paintings with stunning textures, underscored with deep spirituality. Spirituality radiates off Moriuchi’s canvases, as her compositions harken to sacred geometries and mythological symbols. Her works are almost akin to sculptural terrains, putting on layer after layer of Liquitex paint that accumulates on the canvas, which are then delicately gilded with gold. This signature use of gold leaf is not merely an aesthetic choice — as Moriuchi believes that gold has healing and purifying properties, and activates the divine energy points of the heart and mind. The heft of these surfaces embody the vigor with which Moriuchi uses to create these immensely tactile pieces, and even further, mirroring the intensity of artistic gestures of her Gutai peers.
(Photographed in October 2025)